HE WHO CROSSES DEATH

Star Warrior Quadrilogy Book 3

Isaac Hooke

Contents

BOOKS BY ISAAC HOOKE

Preface

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Tane Ganeth

White Essenceworks

Dark Essenceworks

Dark and White Essenceworks

Emerald Essenceworks

Skills

Afterword

About the Author

Acknowledgments

Get The Next Book

BOOKS BY ISAAC HOOKE

Space Opera

Star Warrior Quadrilogy

Star Warrior

Bender of Worlds

He Who Crosses Death

Doom Wielder

Military Science Fiction

ATLAS Trilogy

(published by 47North)

ATLAS

ATLAS 2

ATLAS 3

Alien War Trilogy

Hoplite

Zeus

Titan

Argonauts

Bug Hunt

You Are Prey

Alien Empress

Quantum Predation

Robot Dust Bunnies

City of Phants

Rade’s Fury

Mechs vs. Dinosaurs

A Captain's Crucible

Flagship

Test of Mettle

Cradle of War

Planet Killer

Worlds at War

Science Fiction

The Forever Gate Series

The Dream

A Second Chance

The Mirror Breaks

They Have Wakened Death

I Have Seen Forever

Rebirth

Walls of Steel

The Pendulum Swings

The Last Stand

Thrillers

The Ethan Galaal Series

Clandestine

A Cold Day in Mosul

Terminal Phase

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Copyright © 2018 by Isaac Hooke

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No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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Cover design by Isaac Hooke

Cover image by Shookooboo

Preface

Several readers mentioned in reviews and private messages that they felt there were too many statistics in the last book. Others wanted to see more plot advancement.

I always listen to my readers, so in this one I’ve decided to tone down the RPG elements, and made sure to get a lot done, plot-wise. As usual, feel free to send me your feedback: keeping my fans happy is my top priority.

Hope you enjoy!

- Isaac

1

Tane gazed through the slightly foggy glass pane of his faceplate into the gaping maw that towered over him.

The skull those jaws belonged to was about the same size as a small shuttle. The proboscis region was elongated, and filled with the flat teeth that one might expect to find inside the mouth of an herbivore. A large hole at the top of the proboscis had likely served as the sinus cavity equivalent when the creature was alive, and the four large, recessed holes farther back were probably eye sockets. A ring of horns formed a curved crown above the eyes, while behind that crown a bony plate expanded outward in a fan-like structure. The overall hue of the bones was whitish yellow, hinting at an age that had to be ancient.

The bottom portion was immersed in the murky waters of a swamp. Tane stood at the edge of that mire, and turned his head to look out across the cloudy surface, his gaze following the series of bones that led away from the skull and formed what could best be described as a spinal column. Half-emerged in the cloudy liquid, the bones wended away from the skull, twisting this way and that, with each subsequent segment larger than the last until the size stabilized.

As neck gave way to what had once been the body, immense, curving bones the size of small footbridges protruded outward from each segment, forming a ribcage of sorts, except these particular ribs looped in two directions at once: half faced upward, the other half downward: it was almost as if two ribcages had been glued together, back to back.

The twin ribcages yielded to a square-shaped hip region, and beside it rested two more large, disconnected leg bones, partially submerged in the mire. There were large gashes and bite marks in the osseous surfaces of each, hinting at whatever monstrosity had killed the creature. Past the hips, the spinal column wound onward: the bone segments shrank rapidly there, forming a tail region that was quickly swallowed by the swamp.

The mire itself was surrounded by the tall trees of a thick jungle whose leaves were trifurcated in an alien manner, with a mixture of needles and blades to enable the greatest possible surface area. The ruins of ancient structures occasionally protruded from the foliage, hinting at the sprawling city Gia had detected from orbit via LIDAR. But for the most part the jungle had reclaimed it all.

One particular remnant of that alien city was visible at the moment: a spire made of a strange metal thrust from the swamp edge and into the purple sky. The metal was strange because, depending on the viewing angle, it seemed to disappear: when glimpsed from the front it appeared solid and real, but when regarded from the side via peripheral vision, it vanished entirely as if it were an optical illusion.

Upon that portion of the spire that faced the swamp was a stone trellis. Withered vines crawled upward all along its length. Those vines had a leathery quality, as if mummified.

Other than that spire, the environment was completely solid and in focus around Tane. This was his home universe, not the eye-blurring, emotion-damping Umbra. Which probably explained the tension he felt keenly.

The air was breathable, supposedly, but seeing as humans had never before explored this planet, Tane had decided it was probably best for the team to wear fully pressurized suits as a precautionary measure against contagions. After all, how many times had he played VR movies where the main characters were stupid enough not to wear protective suits while exploring a new planet simply because the atmosphere was “breathable.” Most of the time, by the end of the movie more than a few of those particular characters were dead—infected by some body-transmogrifying alien virus.

Yeah, that wasn’t for Tane.

“Well, that’s a pretty big mouth, it’s got that going for it,” Sinive said.

Sinive!

Stunned, Tane glanced at his HUD to see who had spoken those words over the comm.

It was Gia, not Sinive.

He took a few long breaths to calm his suddenly pounding heart.

They sound nothing alike, how could I confuse her for Sinive?

He glanced to his right. The scepter robot Positron stood there, next to the stasis chamber carried on an anti-grav gurney Gia had printed up aboard the Mosaic. Beyond the glass portal near the top section of that cylindrical chamber he could see Sinive’s face. She wore a strangely peaceful expression, given how violently she had died.

He forced himself to look away.

I’ll find a way to save her. Somehow.

He stood about two meters away from the skull, and four from the swamp itself. Tane didn’t want to get too close to the edge of the mire: he was worried there might be unseen creatures swimming within. Jed had assured him that thanks to the echolocation capabilities of his battle armor, the Volur would be able to detect any monsters long before they got near. But Tane didn’t want to take any chances.

“Is it one of the archaeoceti?” Chase asked. The Mancer stood on the outskirts of the swamp to the left of Tane, past Lyra and Jed. He wore a spacesuit with a Restrainer on the helmet as per Tane’s instructions, which made the Mancer too weary to touch the Essence. Chase had only recently defected from the TSN, and Tane still wasn’t sure how much he could trust the man, even if the Mancer had fought at his side. Chase had helped him take down a few TSN robots and mechs, true, but Tane wondered if the man would be able to kill fellow Mancers if the team ever encountered them. Assuming Chase didn’t turn on Tane entirely if any such Mancers actually appeared. Needless to say, Jed and Lyra were keeping a close eye on him. As was Tane.

“No,” G’allanathamas said. The eight-legged alien was wearing his usual environmental suit, with a glass dome on the carapace revealing his sideways-oriented head. “These are not the archaeoceti. It is one of the grazers, a long dead species the archaeoceti shared a symbiotic relationship with. Beautiful, iridescent creatures when living, they were like your whale, in terms of size. Except instead of swimming within oceans, they roamed upon the plains and jungles of the archaeoceti colony worlds, residing within two universes at the same time: this one, and the Khaeota.”

Each word the dweller said seemed sourced from a different human speaker. It was the nature of the translation box he wore inside that suit.

“The Khaeota?” Tane asked.

“Another universe above this one,” G’allanthamas replied. “Or below it. Depending on your point of view.”

“How many parallel universes are there?” Tane pressed.

“Some among my kind believe there are an infinite number,” the dweller said. “In any case, it was through the grazers that the archaeoceti eventually evolved the ability to draw power from the Khaeota.”

“You see those vines wrapped around the spire?” Jed told Tane. His thick power armor glowed with the nimbus of Essence imbuement. He was wearing his piercings behind his faceplate: the labret below his lip, the ring above his eyebrow. “That’s your archaeoceti. Or what’s left of one of them, anyway.”

Tane returned his attention to the spire at the far side of the swamp, and the mummified vines crawling along the exterior.

“The vines climbing the stone trellis?” Chase said.

“Yes,” Jed said. “And that’s not stone. It’s fossilized wood.”

“So very old…” Chase said.

“This particular spot is, anyway,” Jed said.

“So wait, these aliens we’re looking for, they’re what, sentient plants?” Gia asked. She remained aboard the Mosaic in orbit, though she kept in contact thanks to the nearby shuttle and the extender it contained. The Red Grizzly, with Nebb on board, was also in orbit.

G’allanthamas was the one who answered. “Essentially yes. Or at least they used to be plants. A single archaeoceti could grow to the size of a city. Their bodies, or roots, extended for kilometers underground, with only a small fraction of themselves appearing on the surface to capture sunlight. Typically, small enclaves of four or five would inhabit the same vicinity, their tendrils and roots intertwining as they choked out all other plant life. They had strict rules to prevent overpopulation and the inherent destruction of native plant life that came with it, with growth limits in place on all planets they colonized. Which is why the jungle bounced back so readily on this planet after they were gone, presumably.”

“What, how could a mere plant develop the starships necessary to colonize worlds?” Tane said. “Unless they used other means of colonization... maybe spores or something.”

G’allanthamas wrapped his tentacles together in his species’ equivalent of a laugh. “No no. They didn’t use spores to colonize worlds, but ships. Understand, what you call vines were actually prehensile limbs that allowed them to interact with their environments to a limited degree. They formed symbiotic relationships with the grazers early on in their evolution—the large herbivores offered them protection, while the archaeoceti fed them their own vines.”

“How very appetizing,” Gia said. “Here, I’ll let you eat some of my body if you’ll protect me.”

“Plants on human planets have evolved similar beneficial relationships, mostly with insects,” Lyra said.

“Oh sure,” Gia said. “But still... these are sentient plants we’re talking about. Not just mindless trees.”

“Be that as it may, it worked out quite well for the both of them,” G’allanthamas said.

“Wait, prehensile limbs on a plant?” Tane said. “How does photosynthesis even produce enough energy to facilitate mobility? Or intelligence?”

“The Engineer in you rears its ugly head,” G’allanthamas commented. “Our scientists theorized the symbiosis between the archaeoceti and the grazers only deepened as the two co-evolved, with the two forming a mental link of sorts, so that the archaeoceti were soon able to Siphon from the Khaeota, and that was what gave them the energy for mobility and higher thought.”

“So you’re saying they were constantly Siphoning without exhaustion of any kind setting in?” Tane pressed.

“That’s the theory, anyway,” G’allanthamas said. “Though I’m sure they experienced some sort of exhaustion when they Siphoned more than what their nervous system equivalents were capable of. So as I was saying, they evolved a powerful psychic link with the grazers, so much so that the plants were eventually able to assume control of nearby grazers at will, letting the archaeoceti experience the universe from the viewpoints of the inter-dimensional beasts. It was then that archaeoceti society truly flourished, along with their technological progress. Inhabiting the bodies of the grazers also allowed the aliens to freely explore the Khaeota and the powers that universe contained. They developed most of their particular brand of Essenceworks after that, in what could best be viewed as the Golden Age of archaeoceti kind.”

“What happened to them?” Tane asked.

“Accessing the power of the Khaeota helped them to accelerate their evolution, and they evolved beyond their physical state and the needs such physicality entails,” G’allanthamas responded. “At least, that is what we dwellers believe. It is said they left behind this universe altogether. Probably because of our incessant warring against them. Dwellers enjoyed hunting them, you see, because they made such great sport.”

“They left this universe, and here we are, trying to track them down...” Tane said.

“Here we are,” G’allanthamas agreed. “In the place Tiberius called the Gateway to the archaeoceti.”

Tane turned toward Jed. “You’re sure the signal emanates from this particular location?”

“It is here,” Jed said.

Earlier, the Mosaic had detected a strange signal coming from the planet. Unfortunately, attenuation caused by the dense foliage prevented the vessel from pinpointing the exact position. It was somewhere within the region surrounding this swamp.

He was hoping that after they arrived they would be able to triangulate the source, or that there would be some obvious sign of it. No such luck.

They’d just have to search for it, then.

2

Tane swept his gaze across the swamp one more time. He wondered if the gateway they sought was somewhere underneath the murky waters.

“I suggest we spread out?” Lyra said. “Two groups?” She was dressed in a spacesuit like Tane and Chase, and behind the faceplate he could see the Chrysalium circlet she wore low on her brow. Her eyes detracted from that otherwise perfect face: they were hard and piercing, arrogant and cruel, and good, all at once. There was also a final quality in them that he hadn’t been able to describe until now: they were haunted. When he looked in a mirror, he saw that same tortured gaze in his own eyes.

“Good idea,” Tane said, dismissing his dark thoughts. “We’ll circle the swamp from two different directions and meet up on the far side. If we don’t find anything, we’ll have to wade into the mire and start dredging the bottom next. Jed, Positron, you’re with me. Chase, join Lyra and Gall.”

Tane headed to the west. Jed assumed the point position, becoming invisible, while Positron followed on drag. Sinive’s stasis pod floated along behind the combat robot.

Tane trudged through the trees, taking care to avoid the particular deadly brand of mushrooms Jed had pointed out earlier, readily identifiable by the yellow spots dotting the purple caps. The large mushrooms had spores that contained hydrochloric acid which, if stepped on, could easily dissolve through a boot. And the flesh inside.

According to the scans from orbit, there were otherwise no fauna the party had to worry about. This was a plant world. Which was probably why the archaeoceti had selected it to serve as one of their colonies. Assuming the aliens hadn’t actually terraformed the place to suit them, which was probably the likelier case.

If the team had been visiting the world in the Umbra, the fauna situation would be completely different: they’d have to be on constant lookout for kraals. It was kind of nice not to have to worry about a surprise attack from the native inhabitants, seeing as the only animals that had ever been present—the grazers—were long dead.

Then again, that didn’t mean dwellers or humans were not hiding somewhere in ambush: he had a whole galaxy in pursuit, after all. Still, it was doubtful anyone had followed him here, given the extents Tane had taken to cover his tracks to this world.

Yes, no fauna, but there were insects in profusion. Pollinators. Most were tiny, though a few of the bigger ones looked rather nasty, with dual stingers and multiple biting pincers. Tane was definitely glad he had elected to wear a spacesuit.

He occasionally gazed out at the swamp to his right, toward the bones of the giant creature that resided within it. He wondered what those beasts with the dual ribcages had looked like when living. Though they were herbivores, they were still probably formidable creatures, terrible when provoked.

“Found something,” Lyra announced over the comm.

Tane doubled back with his portion of the team and quickly reached the spot on the far side of the swamp where Lyra was waiting with the others.

As he neared, she stepped aside, revealing a dark, elliptical shape that thrust up from the jungle floor and swallowed the surrounding light. The top and sides of the object were hidden by the foliage; G’allanthamas promptly cleared the branches with his tentacles, revealing the lens-shaped object in its full glory. It was one of the dark artifacts left behind by Tiberius, Tane’s forebear.

There were no dark threads leading from Tane to the artifact—the filaments only appeared in the Umbra, or when he siphoned the Dark in this universe while near such a lens.

Jed knelt and cleared some foliage G’allanthamas had missed from the base of the artifact.

“Here’s the source of your signal,” Jed kicked a rusty metal box he had revealed. He stepped back, and the foliage snapped back into place to hide it once again.

“I’m surprised the power cell lasted this long,” Chase said.

“Some of the more powerful cells are rated to endure a millennium or longer,” Positron said. “Even cells from the time of Tiberius.”

“Maybe so, but I suspect this device was set to begin transmitting only after several centuries had already passed,” Jed said. “Until then, the power cell would have been only under minimal load, drip feeding the timer.”

Lyra stepped toward the artifact, then looked at Tane. “When you touch it, will this create a distortion tunnel to the Umbra or some other higher dimension?”

“No,” Tane said. “Look at the edges. They’re solid and don’t distort the light. It won’t trigger any stored works. Instead, when I touch it, I’ll learn something. Perhaps an Essencework if I have a high enough level. Or maybe I’ll just receive a memory.”

“The one you call Tiberius left this?” Chase asked.

“It has to be Tiberius,” Tane answered.

“Not the archaeoceti?” Chase pressed.

Tane glanced at G’allanthamas for confirmation.

“Don’t look at me,” the alien told him. “While Tiberius spoke often of this system, I know nothing of any artifacts he might have left. But I must say, I tend to agree with you that it was in fact Tiberius, as I have never seen the archaeoceti create something like this. Their works are... different.”

Tane approached the artifact, and the others stepped back, giving him clearance. He extended a hand, but paused.

Well Tiberius, looks like we’re going to meet yet again.

He took a deep breath and touched the object with his glove.

He waited for something to happen. Anything. But time and space remained constant around him.

Motion drew his eye to the spire that protruded from the jungle next to the swamp beside him. A dweller in an environmental suit clung near the top, aiming an energy launcher down at the party.

Before Tane could warn his team, the world around him finally changed.

He was standing in the same spot, he thought, but the swamp was gone, as was most of the jungle, replaced by luminous vines that shrouded everything. They glowed with a gentle violet light, and climbed the wooden trellises set against the many spires around him.

The entire area was on a slope, so that in the distance, past those towering structures, Tane was able to discern a valley. There, roaming the grassland, were gargantuans, their bodies as large as houses, their four legs like tree trunks, their elongated heads the size of small rooms. Long tails and necks emerged from torsos that could best be described as two giant barrels stacked one atop the other, forming a figure eight when viewed from the front. Their skin was covered in shimmering scales of silver and gold, and flecked with diamond dust.

Most of the colossal creatures were congregated near the edges of the savanna, where they gathered next to the spires that bordered the valley and ate the leaves from the luminous vines that grew near the tops of the structures. When the beasts swallowed, the glowing plant matter passed down their gullets and caused the upper regions of their necks to briefly emit light, the entire area becoming momentarily translucent, allowing Tane to watch the passage of the plant matter as it traveled down their esophagi.

Behind those that were feeding, other behemoths rested in the grass. Around them, smaller versions of the animals frolicked about, cajoling in the tall green blades. Their children.

Those beautiful, awesome creatures could only be grazers.

And the glowing vines that covered the land around Tane were no doubt—

“The archaeoceti,” Tane said. Or rather, Tiberius. “An interesting species.”

Tane looked down at his body. He was dressed in a robe whose swirls of black and white competed with one another for dominance. He held two staffs, one silver, the other black. It was the same outfit he had seen upon Tiberius in the last memory he had of the man, though his voice sounded somewhat younger.

“They never revealed their powers to me,” Tiberius continued. “But by rights, they should have. They know I have the ability inside of me. They have tested me and confirmed as much. They also know I would use the power of Khaeota only to help the galaxy. To help them. But I digress. There is more to life than power, after all. You will learn this. Just because you can control, doesn’t mean you should. Sometimes it is better not to force your will upon someone, but instead strive for a more peaceful solution. A compromise. I have struck such a compromise with the archaeoceti.

“They have agreed that when you return here several centuries from now, they will share their knowledge with you. By then they will have left this universe behind entirely. Already there are mutterings among their council of abandoning this reality. I see the signs among them, the universe-weariness. They will not stay.

“If I am right, there will be no archaeoceti inhabiting this world, nor any other worlds in Umanitar, our home universe, when you arrive. Even so, they have offered a way to reach them, a path that is not currently open to me. But five hundred years from now, that path will unfurl. The archaeoceti have sworn it. With this—” Tane’s hand moved of its own accord to point the black staff at a small pyramidal object sitting between the glowing creepers on the ground in front of him. “You and a select few companions may travel to the Khaeota, the universe that sits above our own, somewhere between the Umbra and the Lumina. It’s a one-way journey: pass through the gateway created by this relic and you cannot return, not until you complete whatever trials the archaeoceti have laid before you. You must seek them out in the Khaeota, for only they can send you back to Umanitar. If you cannot find them, or if they have become extinct, then you will be forever trapped in the Khaeota.

“The journey will be difficult, fraught with danger. I cannot say if the attitudes of the archaeoceti have changed since my day, but I knew them as a reserved, somewhat aggrandizing race, mostly unwilling to reveal their secrets, though known to mete out benevolence in measured spurts. Nor can I say whether they will keep the bargain they have struck with me. They will test you. Oh, they will. Be prepared for that. They will want you to prove you are worthy of the powers of the Khaeota. They will not give it lightly.

“For you see, hidden away within the knowledge of the archaeoceti is the ability to bring back the dead.”

Tiberius paused a moment before continuing. “Your eyes light up. This is why you are here, isn’t it? No, rest assured, I haven’t developed the ability to see down the branching rivers of time to you… I merely guessed. Because this is the very reason I myself journeyed here: the promise of restoring someone close who was lost to me. The archaeoceti would not grant me the ability directly, but they have offered to restore my lost companion themselves. I go now to fight for that companion. Apparently, raising someone evokes forces that not even the archaeoceti themselves can contend with alone. Even with all of my power, I may not survive.

“So go then, my fateful protégé. Pass into the Khaeota. Fulfill your destiny. What that fate might be, I have only a small inkling, despite what others may tell you. No doubt whatever words I leave behind will be twisted into a grand prophecy of some sort. I am very much in tune with the Essence. I freely admit this. I can sense some far future calamity coming. I can sense a crossroads. Whether or not you are even involved with this crossroads, I cannot say. All I know is that when it arrives, a few will determine the fate of the many. A few will decide whether to save the galaxy, or destroy it.

“And the latter might not be a very bad thing. Who am I too judge? Maybe the galaxy needs to be destroyed. A fiery cleansing. Because from death always comes rebirth. The galaxy is forever renewing itself. Stars die, casting off their shells, giving birth to new suns from the remnants of their stellar masses. The universe collapses, and is reborn in the next Big Bang. Some would say it would be the work of evil to destroy the galaxy, but good and evil are merely a matter of perspective, aren’t they? Is nature evil for doing what it does best? Before there was order, there was chaos. And order tends to chaos. Always. It is the law of entropy.

“But as usual, I digress. I am merely trying to delay the inevitable, I suppose. I must go fight now for the one I love. It will be my greatest battle yet. Farewell, my protégé. Until we meet again.”

And then the jungle snapped back into existence around Tane, along with the artifact.

He was still gazing at the spire that protruded from the jungle next to the swamp. And at the dweller clinging to the top, its energy launcher pointed down at him.

The dweller fired its weapon.

3

The energy bolt swerved at the last moment and slammed into the artifact.

Tane was thrown backward by the impact.

He landed on his back upon the mossy ground and had the wind knocked out of him.

“Defensive positions, now!” Lyra said. She launched an Essence missile and the bright light streaked over the trees, hitting the top of the spire. But the dweller had slithered from view.

Tane forced himself to sit upright.

Beside him, Jed became invisible. Nearby branches swayed as the Volur darted away into the jungle.

Tane scrambled weakly to his feet; he had been certain the energy bolt had been aimed at his head, but apparently the artifact had drawn it away. In its place was left a shattered pile of black rocks. The impact shouldn’t have had that effect, but it was possible Tane had drained the artifact of whatever Arcanum it contained after he touched it, with Tiberius storing just enough to implant the memories, so that the object was ready to disintegrate before the bolt struck.

“Stay down!” Lyra said. She pulled him behind a nearby log. Positron and Chase hid behind separate trees on the opposite side of the destroyed artifact. The scepter robot had cut all levitation power to the stasis pod, so that the device and its precious cargo lay in cover on the jungle floor between the robot and the Mancer.

G’allanthamas meanwhile had taken cover behind the ruins of the artifact, which were spread out in a pattern just wide enough to shield his broad form.

“Gia, Nebb, we could use some air support here,” Tane transmitted as he drew the D18 rifle from his storage pouch. He activated his energy shield in autogating mode, so that it wouldn’t take damage when he took cover behind objects, as he was doing now.

“They’re not responding,” Lyra said.

True to her word, no answer came.

“World Bender, requesting permission to remove the Restrainer,” Chase said.

“Permission granted,” Tane told the Mancer.

Amaranth streamed through the trees a moment later. Tane knew what they were because of the protective spheres of Essence that enveloped the eight-legged dwellers—these were aliens who could wield the Dark.

Tane threw out his Essence Sight lifeline to get a view of the battlefield from an isometric perspective above and behind himself. Branches were in the way, and he had to adjust accordingly until he could see himself.

Jed blinked into view and struck at one of the Amaranth from the side. He caught it off guard, his sword biting partially through the shield and into several tentacles before the dweller responded, sending smears of darkness hurtling into his body. Jed was slammed into a tree, sword and all.

The injured Amaranth retreated into the undergrowth, staggering, but two more appeared to fill its vacant spot.

An invisible hand closed around Tane so that he couldn’t move; the vise lifted as either Lyra or the Mancer Deflected it. He remembered when he had first faced Amaranth, and Lyra had exhausted herself straightaway trying to create a distortion tunnel to relocate Tane. She had obviously learned from that encounter, and expended her stamina reserves much more strategically.

Still, a distortion tunnel seemed like a good idea right about now…

“Lyra, can you open up a distortion tunnel and take us out of here?” Tane said.

“I’m not sure I want to risk it!” Lyra said. “If one of those Amaranth hurls Disrupt, then my efforts will be wasted, and I’ll be exhausted, out for the rest of the battle.”

“Hold off for now, then!” Tane told her.

Dark smears came at Tane and other members of the party. Those smears were also Deflected, thanks to the efforts of Chase and Lyra, and perhaps G’allanthamas. But then eight-legged Tarkwails stepped through the trees, joining the Amaranth ranks. The spider robots were equipped with laser turrets, and two launchers carrying four deathfire missiles each.

“Concentrate on the Tarkwail!” Tane said. “If they fire those missiles we’re done for!”

Tane had two dark works in reserve: one Fingers of Ruin, and one Melt Metal. He was too far to use Melt Metal, so he released Fingers of Ruin, and three smears of unreality pummeled one of the Tarkwail. He launched an Essence Missile as well, and a large streak of white energy passed right through his second target and struck the Amaranth behind it, eliminating both the robot and the alien: the Feral Necklace he wore made his Essence Missile equivalent to level four. He fired his D18 at yet a third robot.

Between himself and the other members of his party, they were able to eliminate all the Tarkwail before any of the robots could launch their weapons.

Then Tane and his companions turned their attention to the Amaranth. The dwellers would soon learn that it was one thing for them to come across Tane and his team when the members were exhausted. But when fully rested?

The dwellers were in for a fight.

The battle quickly became a stalemate. Each side released different deadly works upon the other. The Amaranth Deflected the Essence Missiles that came their way courtesy of Tane and the other wielders of the White, as well as the Dark works launched by G’allanthamas, such as Fingers of Ruin, while Chase and Lyra Deflected in turn the attacks the aliens launched.

Tane tried to unleash fire a few times, via Persistent Flame, and while that couldn’t be Deflected at the lower levels in that work, it was easy enough for the dwellers to dodge behind a nearby tree to avoid it. Tane succeeded only in setting the jungle ablaze. But that was good, because it brought his team some more cover—the dwellers couldn’t aim through smoke and fire. Though neither could he: Essence Sight was no help here not just because of the flames, but the many branches between himself and his opponents.

Jed had vanished once more, and he appeared once again, cutting through the underside of one of the Amaranth with his Chrysalium sword and disappearing again before any of the others could respond. That Jed could get close enough to breach its defenses and inflict damage before the dweller could respond told Tane the alien victim had likely exhausted most of its Dark reserves.

As the battle of attrition continued, the other Amaranth would be facing similar quandaries: because of the nature of Dark Siphoning, with the long creation times inherent to Dark timelines, when their reserves were done, they could not readily be replenished: the Amaranth would have reduced ability to attack and defend. For offenses, they could use Dark beam hilt equivalents, or their energy launchers, and for defense, they’d have to rely on shield generators. Tane suspected that more than likely they’d flee at that point, considering that his team would still be able to launch works of White for as long as their stamina held out, works that would readily penetrate their shields.

Sure enough, some of the dwellers began to run.

But before it became an all out rout, two particularly large Amaranth emerged from the treeline next to Tane. Towering above him, like the other aliens they wore no environmental suits, and instead relied upon the protection of Dark energy spheres, which enveloped them. And they both wielded black pole-axes generated from Darcanium beam hilts.

Tane rolled away as one of those axes came bearing down on him. It easily cut through the log behind him.

He scrambled to his feet, drawing his own beam hilt, and letting the Essence ax explode into existence. He used it to parry the next attack from the closest Amaranth.

Beside him, Lyra held her own beam hilt, the Essence ax fully extended, her Chrysalium scepter gripped in her opposite hand. She occupied the second dweller.

As Tane and Lyra fought their foes, Chase and the others protected their flanks.

Tane struggled against the powerful attacks launched by his opponent. He kept expecting the Amaranth to freeze him in place, or to launch a close-range Fingers of Ruin that he could not hope to block, but the attacks never came. He realized that either Chase or Lyra had placed a Disrupt work on the alien, preventing it from launching any Dark works for a short time. But that didn’t stop the creature from attacking with that dark pole ax.

Tane continued to remain completely on the defensive. Backing away. If he didn’t have Essence Sight, he would’ve likely tripped on the gnarled foliage directly behind him. As it was, he barely remained on his feet, and narrowly dodged or parried the incoming attacks.

And then he ran a quick ID on his attacker.

It was S’Wraathar.

He couldn’t see for the sudden red haze that consumed his Essence Sight.

S’Wraathar.

The dweller that had killed Sinive.

An inhuman howl emerged from his lips, and he hurled himself at his opponent with such intensity that S’Wraathar was taken off guard. Tane released several powerful Essence Missiles in rapid succession, along with Persistent Flame. S’Wraathar had a high Dexterity, and he managed to avoid taking the impacts head-on, but the works struck him in several glancing blows. S’Wraathar lost a tentacle, and the outer part of his right leg was blackened from the stream of flame.

Tane swung down with his ax and unleashed Melt Metal at the same time: he was close enough to S’Wraathar for the beam hilt to fall within the Dark work’s radius, and the weapon melted away, causing the enemy’s pole ax to cease to exist.

Without the ax for protection, S’Wraathar had no way to stop Tane’s weapon, and Tane was able to slice through the Dark sphere and into the front portion of the alien’s carapace—Tane caught the dweller as S’Wraathar attempted to leap back.

The stricken creature scrambled away, and a pair of dwellers—these two wearing environmental suits—cut in front to protect S’Wraathar. Those two had energy launchers pointed right at Tane, but he hewed them down before they could fire.

He stepped over the corpses to follow S’Wraathar, but more Amaranth had emerged from the jungle to block Tane’s path.

He released Essence Missiles at them and the Amaranth launched the dark smears of Fingers of Ruin in return.

His body froze, and Tane could do nothing as those black curls of unreality made their way toward his body.

At the last moment the blows were Deflected, and he was freed: Lyra stepped in front of him and launched an Essence Missile at the enemies. Chase was at her side a moment later, also shielding Tane.

Tane felt exhausted, but sheer rage drove him onward; Essence ax in hand, he started to go around Lyra and Chase, but Lyra caught his arm, her hand passing through his autogating shield.

“Let him go!” Lyra said. “There are too many with him! Already we’re nearing exhaustion. I know you can feel it! We must leave now, while they regroup!”

Tane fought against her grasp, and in his rage for a moment he considered striking her down.

She must have seen the struggle for control in his eyes, because she said: “Tane!”

He shook himself, and broke free of the anger that had gripped him.

My shadow rises once more inside me.

He took two deep breaths, forced himself to look away from Lyra, and then shouted: “We retreat!”

Tane went to the stasis pod, activated the remote interface, and enabled levitation. When it floated into the air, he grabbed the handle and dragged it away, dashing toward the ruins of the artifact, intending to continue past the remains in the opposite direction of the dwellers.

G’allanthamas stood up from behind the ruins and extended a tentacle of his environmental suit: the fingers at the tip gripped a small pyramidal object. It was the same object Tiberius had shown Tane in the memory, the relic that would take him and his companions to the Khaeota.

“Where did you get that?” Tane asked.

“It was buried inside the artifact,” G’allanthamas replied. “I saw it protruding from the dusty remnants.”

The object would have probably appeared when Tane commanded the artifact to shrink. Assuming he had been able to, considering he had drained the dark artifact of all its power.

Tane snatched away the pyramid and tried to ID it, but got nothing. He shoved it into his storage device and continued running past the destroyed artifact.

Positron joined him. “I got her.”

The robot reached toward the handle of the stasis pod, but Tane refused to give her up.

“I got her,” the scepter insisted.

Tane reluctantly released the pod, and the robot wrapped steel fingers around the handle, dragging Sinive’s stasis chamber along behind.

With his free hand, Tane lowered the D18 from his shoulder, setting the rifle to smart targeting mode. As the others retreated through the foliage beside him, he held the D18 behind him and squeezed the trigger—it wouldn’t target any of his companions, as he had already programmed them to be “excluded.”

He gripped his beam hilt in his other hand, hewing through the thicker foliage in his path with the Essence ax. He kept his shield in autogating mode so that when the slower moving branches got too close, they passed through without causing damage to the energy field.

That’s handy.

He smiled wanly. That was something Sinive would have said.

He dismissed the thought. He wasn’t going to linger on her death and fill himself with sorrow. He wasn’t here to mope around, after all, but to revive her.

And he would not fail.

He swore he wouldn’t.

4

Tane glanced at his overhead map and saw that Jed was bringing up the rear. Tane glanced in the rear view feed his helmet provided, but couldn’t actually see the man: the Volur was probably still invisible. The red dots representing the enemy units remained frozen past the artifact site, which meant the dwellers weren’t yet pursuing. Or at least, none of his team members had yet spotted them if they were, because a sighting would have triggered an update to the enemy locations.

“I was surprised at how quickly their attack ended,” Positron commented.

“Essence attacks are not prolonged affairs,” Lyra said. “We don’t have the stamina for it on our side, while the dwellers don’t have enough Dark works in reserve on theirs. They will return when they have recreated their reserves, don’t you worry. While the White wins when it comes to creating spontaneous works, the Dark has the advantage when it comes to stamina drain. They’ll be back sooner than you expect.”

Tane knew exactly of what she spoke: the Dark taxed him far less than the White, and when he used both together, the Dark acted as a buffer, preventing him from becoming as tired as he did when using the White alone.

He began a new Fingers of Ruin timeline as he ran, while Siphoning some of the Dark into the Finger of Malevolence ring, which gave it a fifty-five percent chance to emit Fingers of Ruin every two minutes.

He heard a crashing through the foliage ahead, and swung his D18 forward.

“Wait, it’s Nebb,” Positron said.

Tane glanced at his overhead map. Sure enough, Nebb’s indicator had appeared, as had Gia’s.

“What happened to you two?” Tane asked over the comm. “You’re supposed to be in orbit!”

“We were ambushed by a pair of dweller ships,” Gia replied over the comm. She was still currently out of view. “They quickly overwhelmed both our ships, and damaged our engines in their surprise attack. They came out of nowhere at the same time… almost as if they were able to jump in to our precise location with an unerring degree of accuracy, but we all know that’s impossible. Probably just got lucky. Either way, we were forced to land nearby. Nebb picked me up in his shuttle, but the aliens shot that down, too. We crash-landed as close to your position as we were able. Though because of damage to the shuttle, we couldn’t contact you, not until we were closer.”

Lyra nodded. “They probably destroyed the shuttle we took here.”

“That would make sense,” Jed said. “Seeing as its repeater served as our only link to the ships in orbit.”

Gia and Nebb emerged from the foliage.

They both wore spacesuits, and carried sawed-off plasma rifles—two in the case of Gia.

“Boss,” Positron said.

“Good to see you,” Nebb said. The smuggler paused reverently beside the stasis pod the robot dragged, and teared up when his eyes rested on the glass portal and Sinive’s lifeless face beyond it. He quickly looked away and bit back his emotion. “So what do we got?”

“Dwellers are pursuing us,” Tane said, dashing past the man. He was afraid of his own emotions rushing to the fore, and knew he couldn’t afford to stop in that moment.

“Amaranth, to be precise,” Positron said.

“Wonderful,” Nebb said. “But I guess that can be expected. If you’re going to hang out with the Whorl Bender, you gotta be ready for the occasional odd bedfellow now and then.”

“I’d hardly call an Amaranth a bedfellow,” Gia said, falling in beside Jed, who had become visible once more.

“No, I suppose not,” Nebb said. The smuggler had taken up a position next to Lyra.

“And did you just call him the ‘Whorl Bender?’” Gia said.

“Yeah,” Nebb said. “Little insider joke.”

Essence ax in hand, Tane continued past them. He finished his dark timeline and put Fingers of Ruin in his reserve slot, and began another. He decided to stop Siphoning into the ring, since it seemed the dwellers weren’t going to attack for a while, and it wouldn’t do to randomly launch darks smears of unreality every two minutes at nonexistent opponents.

“So this is an interesting scenario,” G’allanthamas said. “We’re pursued by Amaranth, who are currently recuperating and preparing new timelines. We can’t stay here, and yet we’ve lost our only means of escape. At least until the ships are able to effect any sort of repairs.”

“It is a bit of a quagmire we’re in, isn’t it?” Tane said.

The alert window was flashing in the lower right of his display, and he enlarged it as he walked.

Level up. Your overall level is now 12! Neural pathways have been enhanced and reinforced! You now have an attribute point to allocate.

He placed his point into Endurance, bringing his total to twenty-two. He knew he’d have to keep increasing his Endurance, essentially for the rest of his life, otherwise he’d be useless in battle, growing tired after launching a few works, especially now that he was reaching the higher levels in the different skills. Sending out those level-four-equivalent Essence Missiles had certainly taken a toll on him.

“How did they find us?” Tane said, glancing at Lyra. “We made multiple jumps getting here, changing our heat signature each time. And you scanned each of us for hidden tracking devices. Jed, you, and Nebb also reviewed the codebase of the AIs for viruses, both ships and robots. Everything was clear.”

“Stop,” Lyra said. “Stop right now.”

Tane did so. She held a gloved hand to his chest assembly. “You have a tracker inside you.”

“Again?” Tane said in disbelief.

Tane realized immediately what had happened. The dwellers had made him inhale nanotech at some point, micromachines that were designed to form a tracking device only after a certain period of time had passed, in order to avoid detection.

“It’s gone,” Lyra said. No doubt she had used Deactivate to eliminate the tracker. “It’s my fault. I should have checked you before we left for the surface.”

“No,” Tane said. “You already scanned me multiple times since we left Xalantas. You couldn’t have known.” Xalantas. That was the planet where Tane had fought S’Wraathar. The planet where Sinive had died. Xalantas. A name forever engraved in infamy within his mind.

“Even so, I should have performed the scan yet again, to be on the safe side,” Lyra said.

“Well, we can’t change that now,” Tane said. “But the question is, which of the aliens put it in me? And why? S’Wraathar or his minions wouldn’t have done it. They would have used any inhaled nanotech to kill me immediately.”

“There must be at least one member of the competing alien faction among his minions,” Lyra said. “A member he no doubt discovered and interrogated before execution. Likely the traitor revealed the tracking device he had planted.”

“It’s a good theory,” Tane said.

“It’s also possible the tracking device came from another source,” Lyra said. “Outside his minions.”

“Another source?” Tane said. “Who?”

“Remember the rock creatures that fought against the TSN while you were inside the terminal on Xalantas?”

“Of course,” Tane said. “I saw S’Wraathar create them. He used some kind of relic made of black rock. You recognized them?”

“Not particularly,” Lyra said. “But I recognize the power from the Volur archives. A power that comes from rock and stone. The creodenti live inside the sub-universe formed by the molecules of said matter. In any case, it’s possible one of the rock beings you faced launched the nanotech you inhaled. Though why they wouldn’t have programmed the nanotech to kill you outright, I have no idea.”

Tane pondered her words. “The creodenti. So S’Wraathar has allied himself with some extra-dimensional friends.”

“Either that, or stolen their power somehow,” Lyra said. “Or at least some of it. That would also explain his ability to jump his ships with an accuracy that seems impossible, as the creodenti had such distortion tunnel technology.”

“Well it’s a good thing we’re seeking out the archaeoceti,” Tane said. “If only to balance things out again between us. Assuming they’ll actually help us…”

“The scales are already tipped in your favor, Engineer,” Jed said. “You wield the White, and the Dark. Not to mention a combination of the two.”

Yes, and perhaps a third power soon, if Tiberius was right.

“What did the artifact teach you?” Lyra asked. “Any new Essenceworks? Something that could help us in our current predicament?”

“No new works,” Tane replied. “It held only memories.”

“Anything we should know?” Lyra said.

“Only that the archaeoceti may not be all that happy to see me,” Tane said. “Tiberius thinks they’re going to test me in some way.”

“And what about the relic your dweller friend gave you?” Lyra pressed.

“What relic?” Gia said.

“Yes, what relic, Engineer?” Jed said.

Tane paused in his retreat to glance at them. He stepped out of the Essence and allowed the White ax to vanish. He holstered the beam hilt and felt the Endurance loss keenly, then reached into his storage pouch and produced the pyramid.

“Ah,” Gia said.

“What is it?” Nebb said.

“I get nothing when I try to ID it,” Jed said.

“As do I,” Lyra added.

“With this, apparently I can open up a gateway to the universe known as Khaeota,” Tane said. “A one way portal.”

“A gateway to another universe, even if one-way, sounds like a good idea right about now,” Gia said. “Given the alternative.” She swiveled in place, scanning the trees, ready to fire her two sawed-off weapons if any attackers appeared in the thick undergrowth. “You’ll be able to find us a way back, right?”

“I don’t know,” Tane said.

“I believe in you,” Gia said, though the doubt was obvious in her voice.

“I, for one, don’t,” Nebb said. “One way. I have a particular dislike for portals that are one way. Especially when they lead to another universe!”

“When we find the archaeoceti, assuming they still exist, I’m hoping they’ll have a means to send me back.” Tane gazed at the mysterious pyramid. He noticed that the surface seemed to undulate in places, as if something alive moved inside of it. “I can’t force any of you come with me...”

“You know we’re coming,” Gia said. “I’m not staying in this jungle while there are Amaranth out there.”

“There might be worse things where we are going,” Tane said.

“We’re all coming with you,” Lyra said. “You don’t even have to ask.”

Tane glanced at Chase.

“I’m with you of course,” the Mancer said. “Here lies only death. At least with you, even if only more death awaits, we have a chance.”

Chase hadn’t returned the Restrainer to his helmet, Tane noticed. He had given the Mancer a standing order that the device was to be applied whenever the team wasn’t in any danger. Tane decided to let it slide for now, since they weren’t out of danger yet: who could say when they would need the Mancer to strike? The time taken to remove a Restrainer could mean the difference between life and death.

“We have to stick together,” Jed agreed.

Tane glanced at Nebb, who sighed. “Well as much as I don’t want to go, I’m obviously not staying here alone. I never did make good dweller bait.”

“Use the pyramid, Doomwielder,” G’allanthamas said. “Take us to the universe of the archaeoceti. Take us to Khaeota.”

Tane sighed. “I hate putting the lives of my friends at risk. And understand, I consider all of you friends. You’d have to be, to stay with me through all of this.”

“Hey, I’m only in it for the money,” Nebb said. He slapped his forehead. “Wait a second, there’s no money to be had here. What am I doing?” He turned around in mock leave-taking, but then swung back toward Tane. “I know you’re going to pay me back a hundredfold when this is through and you take control of the galaxy. I’ll be a rich man. I wouldn’t mind a satrapy on some pleasure planet of some sort, if you can arrange it.”

Tane couldn’t help but smile. “I’m not taking control of the galaxy...”

“You say that now...” Nebb told him.

Tane glanced at the stasis pod that held Sinive, and gazed at her peaceful face.

We’re all doing this for you.

He completed his dark timeline and placed it in reserve, so that he now had two Fingers of Ruin works ready.

Then Tane held the pyramid out in front of him. Thanks to an embedded memory from the latest artifact, he knew to Siphon Dark and White into it, just so, in the right quantities necessary to unlock the stored Essencework.

But what was stored in the relic was a work of neither White nor Dark, but a third Essence he had never encountered before. It felt neither fiery nor cold, but... strangely pleasant. It was almost like the pyramid contained raw hedonism bottled up, waiting to flow out onto his skin and suffuse his body with intoxicating bliss.

The pyramid disintegrated in his palm and the pleasure slipped away from him.

A blindingly bright gateway opened amongst the foliage in front of him, big enough to fit two dwellers abreast. Tane instinctively shielded his eyes against the intensity of that light, and was unable to make out anything within it. He felt a sense of well-being emanating from the opening, however. A sense of belonging.

He tried reducing the aperture of his helmet camera, but still the area beyond the portal remained a greenish-white blob.

“How long will it stay open?” Jed asked.

“I don’t know,” Tane said.

“Already it’s shrinking, I think,” Gia said.

“It is,” Positron said. “By my estimates in an hour from now it will be half the size. In three more it will be gone entirely.”

“It’s not closing fast enough,” Lyra said. “When we enter, the dwellers will no doubt pursue. We should have moved to a different location after destroying the tracker in your lungs.”

“We should have, but we couldn’t have known the gateway would close so slowly,” Tane said.

“The memories you gained from the artifact didn’t tell you?” Gia said.

“Not even Tiberius knew what this gateway looked like,” Tane said. “He only knew how to activate it. It doesn’t matter, anyway. Let the Amaranth pursue. I think we’ll have a lot more to worry about than dwellers once we’re inside.”

“It doesn’t seem so bad…” Nebb had stepped toward the glowing entrance, obviously attracted to it.

“You feel it?” G’allanthamas said. “The sense of welcome. The invitation to what seems a world of pleasure.” Tane hadn’t been sure whether he was the only one feeling that way, and was both gladdened and disappointed to know he wasn’t. “Don’t let the feeling lull you into a sense of complacency. It is an illusion. The archaeoceti had a reputation for treating outsiders brutally, especially those who would attack them, and had the space navy to back up that reputation. In fact, theirs was among the most feared navies out of all the races my people encountered, at least until the TSN.”

“But didn’t you say they made great sport?” Chase asked. “Why hunt something you were so afraid of?”

“And there you’ve hit upon the key,” G’allanthamas responded. “Our fear was precisely the reason we hunted them. If there is no fear during the hunt, no chance the hunter could die, there is no sport.”

“We’re stalling.” Tane took a step toward the gateway. “If we’re going to do this, then let’s do it. Who knows, while the gate might be slowly shrinking now, it could wink out at any moment as far as I’m concerned.”

“Wait, I’ll go first.” Jed cut in front of Tane. The Volur stepped into the white light and vanished.

Tane wrapped a glove around the handle of the stasis pod and dragged it toward the brightness. Positron accompanied him on his right, Lyra his left. She kept her Chrysalium staff firmly gripped in hand.

Tane retrieved his beam hilt as he entered the gateway.

5

The brightness consumed everything. The ground gave away beneath Tane, and he experienced a sensation of falling.

His legs buckled as he felt the forest floor return beneath him. And then the brightness faded, leaving the jungle intact around him. Except, it wasn’t the same jungle. Oh sure, he was probably in the same place he had been before he had walked through the portal, but all the foliage around him glowed a gentle, greenish-blue.

Above, the firmament had become jade rather than purple, and emerald lightning occasionally sparked across the cloudless sky.

He spotted Jed ahead of him. The Volur appeared translucent, as if he were a ghost, so that Tane could see through his body and into the foliage beyond. Jed was surrounded by a white aura.

Lyra and Positron were on his left and right, and just as insubstantial. Lyra had the white aura, while Positron did not.

Tane continued to grip the handle of the stasis pod behind him. He peered through the glass near the top section of the pod. Sinive remained safe inside, her lifeless face peaceful as ever. The pod, and her body, were also translucent.

“Engineer, your body,” Jed said over the comm. His voice distorted. It was different than the bi-octave effect of the Umbra, and seemed to sizzle more than anything else, as if the words crackled with energy.

Tane gazed down at himself. He was just as insubstantial as the rest of them, but unlike the others, his aura was composed of a layered rainbow of colors that spanned the gamut from white to black. The green band seemed particularly bright.

He also had what could best be described as translucent green sparks traveling away from his body, sourced from his fingertips, and the toes of his boots. Those sparks headed away into the jungle ahead, and seemed strongest in intensity close to his spacesuit, appearing emerald in color, but quickly faded the farther away they were from him, until they vanished entirely a meter in front.

“Interesting,” Lyra said. “I still have access to the Essence, by the way.”

“As do I,” Tane said, feeling the Dark and White waiting just beyond the periphery of perception. “Both of them.” His voice distorted, crackling with energy.

“I suspect all of us who can Siphon will,” Jed said. “Always a good sign.”

Tane felt the pod shove against him from behind. Looking back, he saw Gia emerging from the bright smear of the portal he had only just walked through. She was surrounded by a weak white aura, and had bumped into the stasis pod.

“Clear away from the portal so the others can follow,” Tane said.

“You’re like a living power generator or something,” Gia commented upon seeing him. “Talk about green energy.”

“You get used to him appearing weird in these places,” Nebb said, emerging. Like Positron, he had no aura whatsoever.

“Well, physics at least works partially the same here,” Gia said. “Considering that we’re able to communicate over the comm band.”

Chase emerged, followed by G’allanthamas. The Mancer had a white aura about half as strong as that of Jed and Lyra, while G’allanthamas had a black one that matched the White of both Volurs in intensity. It looked like a translucent, dark mist enveloping his environmental suit to form a skin-tight layer.

“Rainbow!” G’allanthamas said when he saw Tane, no doubt commenting on the strange aura.

With Chase and G’allanthamas through, Tane had Jed and Positron secure the jungle perimeter around them. The area was clear.

“According to my data, the air is still breathable here,” Jed said.

“Good to know,” Tane said.

“I’d recommend keeping your helmets on,” Lyra said. “We should be doubly concerned about infections, here. This place could be swarming with the equivalent of microcrillia.”

“Very good point,” Tane said.

“While that may be true,” Chase said. “Have you noticed? The insects are gone.”

“He’s right,” Jed said.

“What’s that mean?” Tane said.

“Only that this universe is similar to the Umbra,” Jed said. “In that wildlife, including insects, isn’t duplicated here, while everything else is.”

Tane paused to consider his options.

“We could wait here and ambush the dwellers when they come through,” Jed suggested.

“I was thinking that, but we still have no idea how many there are,” Tane said. “We’d have the advantage of surprise at first, true, but I suspect they’d quickly overwhelm us with their numbers. No, our best bet is to continue onward, and follow the path marked out by these green sparks coming from my body.”

“You’re getting better at this,” Jed said.

“At what?” Tane asked.

“Commanding,” Jed replied. “And your strategic thoughts are sound. Even so, before we move on, allow me to leave a little present for our Amaranth friends.”

Jed knelt next to the bright opening and held his open palm to the jungle floor.

“Essence Trap?” Tane asked.

“Yes,” Jed answered, standing. “Normally the trigger for the explosion is an opening door, such as one leading inside a room or vault. But in this case, I’ve set the trigger to be the flora surrounding the jungle floor. When the dwellers step through…” He opened his fist, indicating an explosion.

Jed placed several more such hidden traps in the area like mines.

“What if we have to return this way, and quickly?” Gia asked.

“I’ve set them to ignore each of you,” Jed said. “They’ll trigger only for our pursuers. Well, or anything else that happens to come this way.”

When he was satisfied with the traps he had placed, Jed led the way forward. From his position on point, the Volur couldn’t see the green sparks leading away from Tane, so Tane had to relay any directional changes that were needed to ensure the Volur remained on course and following those emissions.

Tane followed just behind Jed, while after him was Positron, conveying Sinive’s stasis pod by the handle.

Tane glanced at the rear-view video feed provided by his helmet, and watched the others trudge through the jungle behind him. He kept a wary eye on the receding gateway beyond, expecting Amaranth to emerge at any moment, and was glad when the jungle undergrowth finally swallowed the last of its brightness.

They proceeded onward through that bright realm of glowing trees. Where every branch and leaf hinted at the promise of both pleasure and pain. Where the greenish lightning that occasionally flashed overhead made no thunder. A realm that offered, somewhere, the means to revive Sinive.

It was the only reason he was here. Otherwise, he would have cloistered himself away on some planet, away from humans and dwellers and the rest of the universe.

When this was done, he planned to do that very thing—elope with Sinive somewhere faraway. The others could come, too, if they desired. He wasn’t here to save or destroy the galaxy. He just wanted to live in peace.

The canopy was thick, the leaves of the tall trees blotting out the sun and casting the land in a twilight that was brighter than it should have been thanks to the greenish-blue glow of everything around him. A gentle breeze occasionally sent the whispers of rustling leaves through the upper branches. If Tane weren’t wearing a climate-controlled, pressurized spacesuit, he supposed the air would have smelled like decaying plant matter, and that his forehead would have been steeped in sweat.

The lack of sunlight made the forest floor easier to traverse, as only mosses and other small foliage could endure without the light, stealing whatever nutrients they could from the soil and the roots of the trees themselves. Lianas thick as cables hung down from the heights, sometimes all the way to the ground, so that the party occasionally had to slip through the vegetation. Meanwhile, the spongy moss was so soft in places that it sometimes ate their spacesuits up to the thighs.

After about five minutes of trudging through the moss and following the green sparks that emerged from his body, Tane heard a distant explosion. It seemed to come from behind them, but it was difficult to tell, given the echo effect of all those trees and the undergrowth.

He glanced at Lyra.

“The Amaranth have come,” Lyra said.

The group increased their pace.

It was another five minutes after that when the glowing leaves began to rustle in earnest as the wind picked up. The lianas that hung from the upper canopy swayed as the gusts pierced the dense branches.

The wind became even fiercer, and the canopy ripped away entirely overhead in places as leaves were torn away in clumps. The unveiled sky beyond had become completely black, and that eerie green lightning flashed incessantly between clouds, still completely silent.

The heavens opened up. Rain mixed with thumbnail-sized hail pelted down. Tane heard the rat-a-tat of pellets striking his helmet, and the plants and spacesuits around him.

“Take shelter!” Jed said. “That hail will break your faceplates!”

Tane dove underneath the thick lianas that crowded the base of a particularly large tree, joining Positron, who yet conveyed Sinive. Tane wrapped a protective hand around her stasis pod, taking comfort that she was near. The trunk and those thick overhanging lianas offered good protection from the storm, but beyond the hanging plants, he could soon see nothing in the forest around him, as the rain and hail fell in a sheer wall that drowned out even the glow from the undergrowth and nearby trees. It battered the plants around him, the initial rat-a-tat becoming an incessant roar. He had never seen so much rain in his life. His home planet, Galtede Serpentis was a dry, inhospitable place, filled with deserts. When storms came, they were literally walls of sand, with black lightning generated in the charged depths, not waterfalls of rain.

Yes, he was as far away from his home as he could come.

Below him, water flowed by in thick, eddying currents alongside the tree. The liquid glowed green like everything else, adding to the surreal nature of the storm. The spongy ground underneath became softer as the seconds passed, and he found himself sinking slightly. When the eddying water enveloped his thighs, he wasn’t sure if it was because he had sunk, or that the water was rising.

“Climb the trees!” Lyra said over the comm. His helmet employed noise canceling so that he could here her voice above the hail. “We’ll all be swept away otherwise!”

Tane had no climbing skills, but thankfully the profusion of lianas made scaling the tree easy. That, and the strength enhancement provided by his spacesuit. He dialed up the servomotor settings and gripped the far side of Sinive’s stasis pod, while Positron took the other: the power cells that provided levitation weren’t strong enough to lift the stasis pod more than a meter off the ground, so Tane and the robot had to carry it up the tree.

With his free hand, he grabbed a hanging liana and lifted his feet off the ground, and then planted them firmly on the bark in front of him. Then he pulled himself up.

He couldn’t move any farther, not while he gripped the stasis pod in his other hand, so he lowered himself once more and stepped back into the rising water.

“Attach the handle to your belt!” Positron said.

“I was just about to,” Tane told the robot.

He opened up the carbon fiber cable reel at his utility belt and unwound a small amount, securing it to the handle of the levitating pod beside him. When that was done, he placed both hands around the liana, planted his feet on the trunk, and lifted himself. He felt the pull of the pod at his belt, wrenching his hips to the side. He upped the servomotors of the hip region to compensate, but his waist was still dragged slightly to the right by the weight. It didn’t matter, because he could climb.

He did so, hand over hand, walking his boots up the trunk, pulling the stasis pod up and away from the rising water. Positron mirrored him on the opposite side of the stasis pod, with the handle on the far side attached to the robot’s own belt with a similar cable.

Tane glanced at his overhead map and saw that the others were making good progress climbing up trees nearby, also using the lianas as ropes.

The upper canopy was a long ways above yet, but Tane planned to stop soon anyway: he didn’t want to expose himself to the raw forces of the storm by getting too high. Yes, he’d stop after a moment and just hang there, letting his servomotors take the weight. Below, the forest floor was becoming a veritable river.

The hail seemed to let up then, leaving only the rain, which was still so thick that he couldn’t see more than a few meters past the lianas girding the trunk.

“We dwellers hate water, you know,” G’allanthamas said over the comm.

“But you’re used to liquid environments!” Tane said.

“Liquid hydrocarbon environments,” G’allanthamas corrected. “Not water! It’s so thick and unwieldy. If I fall into the river forming below, I’ll sink like a rock.”

And then Tane heard an immensely loud crack, as if some enormous Essence ax had sliced through the air. It was accompanied by a simultaneous green flash, and he realized one of the lightning bolts had struck somewhere very close nearby. An alert flashed on his HUD, telling him that the helmet had automatically reduced the volume of the sound. If it hadn’t, his ears would no doubt be ringing at this moment.

Another earth-shattering crack and blindingly bright flash combination filled the air, and the tree he climbed began to careen to the left. Apparently, the lightning bolt had struck the base of the very trunk he was climbing. He quickly scrambled to the right, toward the far side of the tree, drawing the stasis pod and Sinive with him—he didn’t want to be crushed when the heavy bole struck the ground. Positron matched his movements on the other side of the pod, and scrambled in his direction.

The tree impacted the ground a moment later, splashing into the water. The force of the strike passed through the trunk and into Tane, throwing him a meter into the air. He landed hard on the trunk and nearly slipped into the river formed by the storm, flowing past on either side. The water level only reached halfway up the thick trunk, but it would still be enough to sweep him away if he fell. But it wasn’t deep enough to drag away the heavy tree, apparently. Not yet.

More lightning struck other trees around him. According to his overhead map, his companions clung to all of the stricken trunks.

“What the hell!” Gia said. “What are the chances? It’s like we’re all lightning rods or something!”

With the fall of those trees came the loss of the canopy immediately above, and Tane was exposed to the full force of the rain, as were the others on their own logs, no doubt. At least there was no hail for the moment. But that could change at any time.

The water levels continued to rise, so that in moments his tree was moving down the makeshift river, as were the boles that harbored his companions.

“When you pass near a trunk, try to grab on,” Jed said over the comm.

Tane squinted his eyes, struggling to see through the thick rain. He received a sharing request from Jed and accepted. Three-dimensional wireframes of all the tree trunks waiting up ahead overlaid his vision, thanks to the multi-echo LIDAR Jed had in his suit.

“Get ready,” Tane told Positron; like him, the robot still had the stasis pod attached to its belt. But as Tane prepared to leap at a coming tree, lightning struck near the base, just above the water, and that tree toppled into the river. More lightning came in, felling any other trees in his path, and that of his companions, ensuring that they couldn’t disembark onto any of the passing boles.

“What the hell is this?” Nebb said over the comm from the tree he clung to with Gia.

“Someone doesn’t want us climbing their trees,” Lyra commented.

As he was inexorably dragged down that river, Tane saw something then through the thick rain.

Something... strange.

6

Tane squinted his eyes. A small, greenish flash had penetrated the depths of the thick rain some distance ahead of him. It wasn’t bright enough to be the lightning from the clouds.

Tane gazed at the spot where the flash had occurred, but saw nothing through the thick veil of raindrops, and began to believe he had imagined it. But then it came again. Closer. To his right.

“Did you see that?” Chase said.

“Something’s out here with us,” Nebb said.

“If you figured that out only now,” Jed said. “You’re slower than I thought, Smuggler.”

“Thanks,” Nebb said. “Just what I need. A Volur telling me I’m slow.”

Before Jed or anyone else could offer any retort, Tane saw something else.

A strange, ghostly creature hovered two meters in front of him, just within the reduced visual range enforced by the rain. It wasn’t as bright as the flashes that had appeared moments before, otherwise it would have been more readily visible. Instead, it glowed a dull green, and seemed to be made of electricity. It didn’t appear on the LIDAR. The shape was vaguely humanoid, with two arms and a torso, but no obvious head, and no legs. Okay, maybe it was more like a tadpole with arms than a humanoid...

He tried to ID it, but received no matches. That it was ghostly and translucent like Tane himself made him think it didn’t entirely belong in this universe.

“I’ve got—” Tane began.

Before he could finish, the creature struck him. It went right through his shield, which was still active and in autogating mode, and collided with his chest assembly. He felt a racking pain all across his midsection and couldn’t breathe. When the electrical being pulled away, it hovered above him as he gasped for breath; it was taunting him he thought, promising more pain.

He spared a glance at his overhead map and saw that red dots had appeared next to the indicators of the other team members, on the respective logs they clung to: they were all facing attackers of some sort. Probably the same as his own.

“They’re everywhere!” Gia said.

Tane reached for his beam hilt but the creature was faster and struck again. Tane howled in agony as it impacted his chest assembly and sent electrical waves pulsing into his body. It felt like his blood had turned to acid and was melting away his insides. His lungs ceased to draw air, his respiratory tracks frozen by the pain that wracked them.

Despite his anguish, he managed to step into the Essence, and threw out his Essence Sight lifeline. He saw that Positron was similarly pinned by one of the electrical beings: the robot’s body thrashed about uncontrollably underneath it. Tane couldn’t see anyone else around him, thanks to the rain, so he drew his Essence Sight in close, letting his perspective hover just above and behind himself.

He released one of his Dark reserves—Fingers of Ruin. It passed right through the creature that yet clung to his chest assembly.

Can’t breathe...

He tried an Essence Missile next. Also no effect. As the pain continued unabated, he grew desperate, and tried Air Current... Persistent Flame... Light Glove... nothing worked.

On a whim, he attempted Wound Healing.

It’s not going to work. Why would I want to heal my opponent?

But he planted the work inside the entity anyway.

That did it.

The creature shrieked, and released him, vanishing into the thick rain around him.

Tane slumped, panting so hard his throat burned. He could still feel the lingering aftereffects of the pain, his muscles spasming inside his chest. But at least his blood no longer felt like acid, and as far as he could tell, his insides remained intact—the organ status report on his HUD confirmed as much.

He turned toward Positron and also launched a Healing work at the electrical tadpole that clung to him, and the being fled with a howl.

“Chase, Lyra, use Wound Healing!” Tane transmitted. “They hate it!”

He had an idea. He retrieved his beam hilt and activated the Essence ax. He created a Branchwork of Wound Healing and wound it around the energy from the hilt, as he would when sending the work into a human body to envelop a wound. He allowed it to partially set in this reality, so that he wouldn’t have to further modify the work, and could simply maintain it. It also meant that when he moved his ax, the Healing work followed the haft and twin blades without Tane having to do anything.

Tane unhitched the carbon fiber cord from the stasis pod, allowing it to retract into his belt so that he had complete freedom of motion, and would be ready when the next attack came.

“Stay close to me, Positron!” Tane ordered. He glanced toward the robot. Positron was lying on the log next to the stasis pod, unmoving. Tane checked the robot’s status indicator on his HUD: Positron was offline. The electrical attack must have overloaded his circuitry in some way.

The carbon fiber cord the robot had attached to the stasis pod was severed, and flailed in the wind, occasionally whipping the side of the log. Positron must have accidentally cut through the cord during the attack, when its body had thrashed about uncontrollably.

Tane concentrated his attention on the storm around him. When the next electrical tadpole appeared, Tane swung the Essence ax at his foe and allowed the Healing work to completely set when it struck. The creature shrieked as it split in two; the twin halves rapidly dissipated.

“Wrap your beam hilt in Healing!” Tane said over the comm for Lyra’s benefit.

When she didn’t respond, he had to assume she had already thought of doing the same. Maybe she had even done it before he had, but hadn’t relayed the instructions to him because she thought the ability was beyond him.

Well, whatever the case, he couldn’t let his guard down. He replaced the Healing work with another, partially setting it around the blade.

Lightning continued to strike up ahead, clearing the trees from their paths, allowing him and his companions to continue drifting down the rain-fed river. He felt an intense gust of wind, and momentarily ducked low to wrap his hand around a knobby lump in the tree, not wanting to be swept away. He also grabbed onto the handle of the stasis pod.

He glanced at his overhead map and saw that the trees the different party members were clinging to were slowly being drawn together. Lyra’s doing, no doubt, using her high level in Air Current to achieve the task. He remembered a time when he had done something similar, using the boost from a whole roomful of Chrysalium gates. By combining the trunks, Tane and Lyra could help the others, who likely had no ability to defend themselves against the ghostly creatures.

Tane waited for the next attack to come. Since the creatures didn’t appear on LIDAR, he had to rely on his own vision to see them. And because he couldn’t discern anything past two meters in any direction, that meant he had little warning of their attacks. But he would stave them off as best as he was able.

When the next ghostly being appeared, it surprised him, swerving suddenly as he swung down at the thing, and he missed. And instead of striking him, the being hit the stasis pod.

The precious vessel that contained Sinive was knocked right off the trunk.

Tane deactivated his Essence ax and let the Healing work dissipate as he leaped into the water after her. He barely grabbed on to the pod, which quickly sank, drawing him to the forest floor that was now underwater. He could see about the same two meter distance through the murky depths. The flooded undergrowth on the ground still glowed, but the illumination seemed diminished by the water, and wasn’t enough to light the immediate area. Then again, that glow might have been the only thing giving him his current two meters of visual acuity.

He peered past the glass portal on the stasis pod and spotted the electrical ghost inside, attached to Sinive, but before Tane could send it away with a Healing work, it fled, vanishing into the watery murk around him. The being must have realized she was already dead.

He struggled to lift the stasis pod from the depths, but it was too heavy, even with his servomotors maxed out. He tried to access the remote interface for the levitation feature, but the ghostly being must have shorted it out, because he got nothing.

He glanced at his overhead map and watched helplessly as the indicators representing Jed and the others moved away southward, and quickly froze, meaning the logs they resided upon had been swept downriver and out of range.

Now I’m alone.

It was just him, and Sinive, underneath the river formed by the deluge.

He lodged one boot in between the stasis pod and the jungle floor so that the current wouldn’t sweep him away, and also unwound the carbon fiber cable from his belt and attached it to one of the handles, as a lifeline in case he lost his footing. And then he reactivated his beam hilt. The bright white light of the Essence ax exploded into being, further illuminating his underwater surroundings. He partially set a Healing work around the ax in preparation for what was coming. He tested the heft, swinging it through the liquid: the Essence haft and dual blades weren’t impeded by the water and its current, but his arms and torso were, so he pumped up his servomotor outputs. When he sliced his blade through the liquid again, it was almost as if he cut through air. Good enough.

He cast about with his Essence Sight, searching for any attackers, preparing to defend Sinive’s body to the death.

I won’t let them take her.

A new type of ghostly creature appeared in the murk in front of him, moving fast, as it was coming downstream with the current. Because of the tentacles it possessed, Tane had the impression it was water-based, as if it had emerged from some actual river nearby that had overflowed its banks thanks to the storm. Its shimmering energy formed a creature with the tentacled head of a squid and the body of an alligator.

He struck down with the ax and released the Healing work, splitting that squid-like head in two. Then he moved aside as the dissipating body drifted past.

He sheathed his Essence ax in another Healing work, and felt a wave of dizziness pass through him; he momentarily succumbed to the current, allowing it to hurl his body against the stasis pod. He fought it, and pushed himself away from the pod, though of course he left his boot jammed in between the forest floor and the metallic base.

The healing works were taxing him rapidly, he realized, even though they were lower level. He was suddenly very thankful he had been putting all of his attribute points into Endurance. Without it, he wouldn’t have lasted even half this long.

He Siphoned the Dark at the same time, and that helped reduce the intensity of the exhaustion that was threatening to subdue him.

Must fight it.

From nowhere one of the electrical alligator squids struck him, and tore him completely away from the stasis pod. It clamped down on his spacesuit with its sparking maw. The currents passed through into Tane’s chest, and he felt the familiar pain anew.

He managed to form a Healing work and unleashed it, sending the creature away. He was relieved to find that the carbon fiber cable—his lifeline to Sinive—had held, and he used it to reel himself in, returning to the precious stasis pod. He braced himself against the front, bearing the brunt of that storm-swelled current, and prepared for whatever was coming next.

In moments more of the aquatic creatures appeared. They encircled him and the stasis pod, and simply floated in place—these ones didn’t have to fight against the current. It simply didn’t affect them.

He turned about slowly, as much as possible while keeping his boot lodged underneath the stasis pod, in any case, and flourished his bright Essence ax menacingly, unwilling to back down. He knew he wouldn’t be able to take them all, but at least he would die knowing that he had done all he could to save Sinive.

And that was all that mattered to him.

The creatures attacked.

Tane swung at the first, killing it immediately as he set the Healing work, but then the others closed on him. They overlapped one another, and enveloped the torso of his spacesuit in their collective jaws.

He felt agony unlike anything that had come before. He gritted his teeth, feeling the claws of the electricity dig into every ganglia in his nervous system. He felt its talons tear into the gray matter of his skull, and split his brain open neuron by neuron, melting and boiling each one of them away. It was like an energy pistol had fallen into his head and was unleashing plasma bolts in every direction at once.

He was a being of pure pain in that moment. He could not move. He could not speak. He stepped out of the Essence, and released the Dark, and simply surrendered to the overwhelming pain. He simply wanted it all to end. Death wouldn’t be such a bad thing right about now. Any release from this pain would be welcome.

Around him, the world mercifully grew dark.

7

Tane opened his eyes. He was lying on top of the stasis pod, staring up at a clear jade sky through his open faceplate. The heat of the sun beat down on his skin, warming his face.

Something moved away from his cheek, and he felt a coldness on his skin where that something had been in contact only moments before.

Lyra’s gloved hand.

She looked down at him and slumped in relief.

“What—” Tane said.

“Your heart had stopped,” Jed said.

Tane lifted his head. Beside him, Jed was linked with Lyra, along with Chase. Or at least, Tane assumed so, since they were crouched against the stasis pod beside Lyra, hand in hand. Or rather, glove in glove.

Jed released her, and slid back. He splashed into the receding storm water and sat down in the liquid—it reached to his hips—and then propped his back against the stasis pod. Chase joined him.

G’allanthamas, Gia, Nebb and Positron watched nearby.

Lyra meanwhile remained slumped over Tane.

“Uh, do you mind?” Tane asked her. “Personal space...”

“Oh.” Lyra finally slid off Tane, and he sat up. He activated the “helmet close” feature on his HUD, but the faceplate refused to seal.

“In case you’re wondering, I had to break your helmet polycarbonate to get access to your face,” Lyra said. “So you can’t seal it anymore.”

“Ah,” Tane said.

He had a sudden worry about alien infections, and imagined himself breathing in a bunch of spores that were irreparably changing his DNA at that very moment.

I’ve played a few too many VR video games in my day.

Then again, there was the threat of whatever microcrillia equivalents this universe harbored, and that was likely very real. He just had to hope he’d escape infection.

He glanced at the glass portal in the pod and saw that Sinive remained inside, features peaceful as ever. He rested a gloved hand on the glass, and the act calmed him.

Even if I do get infected by something, it doesn’t matter. As long as I save her.

He tried to stand but felt extremely weak, and had to sit on the pod once more.

“The dizziness will pass,” Lyra said. “We’ll have to rest here for at least ten minutes, I think. Considering that we’re all exhausted.”

“What happened?” Tane said.

“What do you think, Engineer?” Jed said. “We came back for you.”

“Lyra used Air Current to join our logs together,” Gia said. “We found Positron lying confused on the log where you and the stasis pod were supposed to be.”

“The electrical beings had caused my systems to reboot,” Positron explained.

“You were offline last I saw you,” Tane said.

“Yes,” Positron said. “The reboot took longer than usual—some of my internal circtruiry had to be rerouted around damaged sections.”

“As I was saying, when we realized you were gone,” Gia continued. “G’allanthamas used a distortion tunnel he had in reserve, and he brought us as close to you as he could. We had to dive underwater and swim the rest of the way. We vented oxygen for acceleration, and that helped.”

“When we found you, the creatures were all around you,” Nebb said. “It was like they had it in for you. But I valiantly threw myself at them anyway. You know, self-sacrificing man that I am.”

“Actually, he stayed back the whole time,” Chase said.

“Hey, I was providing covering fire,” Nebb said. “And moral support. The latter, mostly, considering our weapons were useless against those things.”

“How did you get them off me?” Tane said.

“I placed a moderate Healing work inside them,” Lyra said. “Since all of the creatures were essentially overlapping, when I set it in this reality, it struck them all at the same time. They dispersed, and the current swept them downstream.”

“They were hovering in place when I saw them,” Tane said. “Unaffected by the current.”

“Yes, I noticed the surface variants have the ability to ignore the physics of this reality at will,” Lyra said. “And I assumed the same was true of the aquatic types. But when I damaged them with my Healing work, apparently it negated that ability.”

Tane used the next few minutes to rest, just as Lyra prescribed.

He checked his notifications during that time, and noticed he had gained a few levels. But as Jed had once told him, the excitement and sheen of leveling was wearing off. At this point, it seemed mostly one big grind to Tane. Still, he was grateful for the attribute point.

Level up. Your overall level is now 13! Neural pathways have been enhanced and reinforced! You now have an attribute point to allocate.

Level up. Wound Healing is now Level 2. You can now heal more serious injuries, at the cost of greater stamina expenditure.

New sub-skill received.

Beam Hilt Control — Essence Sheath. Level 1. You can now wrap your blade in another work to enhance its effect. The sheath is currently limited to White Essence Level 1 and 2 works.

He put his attribute point into Endurance of course.

That latter “sub-skill,” Essence Sheath, was really the only thing that excited him. With it, he could probably make himself a blade of fire if he wrapped it in Persistent Flame, for example. Like a dweller’s beam hilt.

That reminded him, he had taken a C’Havar beam hilt from a fallen dweller. He had tried activating it on the journey to this planet, but hadn’t been able to, even when he poured Dark Essence into the blade. G’allanthamas had explained that the weapon was biometrically locked, but offered to hack into the blade for him. The dweller had succeeded, and returned the weapon. As promised, it allowed Tane to create a blade of the Dark, but so far, he hadn’t had a chance to get in much practice with it. And he wasn’t about to do so in the middle of combat. He didn’t really have much reason to use it, considering that his beam hilt control was already level three for the White Essence. Still, someday he planned to get his Dark beam hilt control up to speed.

Positron opened up a panel in the stasis pod while the others rested, and repaired the remote interface so that the pod could levitate again—after Tane slid off of it of course and propped himself against a small boulder instead. Tane could have probably fixed it himself, given his Engineering background, but he was simply too weary.

At the ten minute mark, Tane continued to lean against that boulder, still feeling too weary to resume the mission. No one else said anything. They all wanted to rest, too.

Finally, at the twenty minute mark, Jed stood.

“Come on, Engineer,” Jed said. “We can’t stay here. You know this. There are ghostly entities out there that seem intent on our blood. And rogue Amaranth, hunting us.”

“But where are we supposed to go?” Nebb asked.

“We follow the sparks,” Tane answered, indicating the translucent green sparks that emanated from his body, leading away into the jungle. Those glowing eaves still seemed welcoming, despite the fact that Tane knew the jungle was anything but.

By then the makeshift river had receded entirely, and they marched across the floodplain toward those eaves without issue, stepping around the trees that had fallen during the storm. Overhead, lightning occasionally sparked across the sky, reminding them that another squall could come again at any time. Steam rose from the foliage as the sun baked away the last of the rainwater.

They reached the intact canopy and entered the glowing jungle. The sparks led ever onward through the trees, while sunlight occasionally javelined down through cracks in the leafy awning.

Jed took point, and was invisible this time; the others followed, with Positron conveying the stasis pod in the center of the group. Tane relayed the occasional directional change to the Volur, guiding Jed based on the sparks emanating from his own body.

Without his faceplate, Tane could finally smell the jungle around them. The scent was slightly dusty, as could be expected after a rainstorm, with hints of mold and decay. The sound of their feet crunching through the undergrowth seemed muted slightly, perhaps because Tane was listening to it directly with his ears rather than through any enhancement provided by the helmet. That crunching faded entirely when they reached the spongy moss that was common in the glowing forest.

Sawed-off rifle in hand, Nebb came up alongside Tane.

“You know, I’ve been thinking about what you told me when you zapped the control chip in my head,” the smuggler said over a private channel. “Speaking of which, thanks again for that, by the way. I can’t tell you how bad it was to be trapped inside my own body and not able to control my actions, but to see it all. Brings new meaning to the phrase living vicariously.”

“You’re welcome,” Tane said, not looking away from the surrounding trees. Like most of them, he was worried about an ambush. He kept his voice low as he continued, out of respect for Nebb’s privacy—the man had chosen a private channel for a reason, and Tane didn’t want the others to overhear, which would be an easy thing given that his helmet could no longer be sealed. “So you were thinking about what I told you?”

“That’s right,” Nebb said. “About the price. Once we find these archaeoceti, what will it cost to save Sinive?”

“I don’t know,” Tane said.

“If it takes a life,” Nebb said. “I’ll pay with mine.”

“I’m worried it might take all our lives,” Tane said.

“Ah,” Nebb said. “I try to be heroic for once, and it’s lost in all the noise as usual.”

Tane smiled at the man. “It wasn’t lost, my friend.”

“Is that what I am, your friend?” Nebb said. “At first I told myself that I was helping you only for the money. And then to rescue Sinive, when the aliens had her. But you know what? You’re right. I guess you are my friend. I can’t say I’d die for you. But for Sinive, you already know I would.”

“Why?” Tane said.

“She reminds me of the person I could have been,” Nebb said. “Before I let life twist my insides into what I became. The smuggler is driven by profit, and profit alone. Reputation factors into it as well. If people think they can get away with ripping you off, they will. I could be ruthless at times, protecting that reputation. I killed a few people who crossed me. I’ve always regretted that, more than anything I’ve done. I told Sinive I had an apprentice once. Someone who reminded me of her. And that I let that apprentice go.

“It was a lie. Well, some of it, anyway. The part about the apprentice reminding me of her was true. But the other part... I couldn’t tell Sinive the truth. I made up some story about how my apprentice became addicted to VR and eventually uploaded her mind into an AI core. None of that happened. I actually killed that apprentice. Killed her. Because she crossed me. Yes, I can feel you judging me. And you should. I’m not a good man. I can’t be. This is why I’m here. This is why I help you. My second chance. And if I can save Sinive, give my life for hers, it’ll right all the wrongs I’ve made.”

Tane studied the man for a moment. That was a little more than he wanted to know. But it did explain some of his motivations, at least.

Finally, Tane spoke: “If I can help it, none of us will give up our lives. We’ve all made mistakes at some point in our short existence. Some bigger than others. We pay the price for those mistakes, in one way or another, and when the price is paid, those mistakes don’t have to define us anymore. You’re not the same man you were all those years ago. The ruthless smuggler who would kill to protect his reputation is gone. And you’re right: we all get second chances. All of us. This is yours.”

Nebb stared at him, seeming stunned. Then the smuggler blinked rapidly and looked away. “I can see why you’re the Bender of Worlds.”

Nebb slowed as if planning to return to his previous spot in the group marching order, but then accelerated to remain by his side. “Oh, and when we revive her, I have to ask that you don’t tell Sinive any of this. It’s better if she doesn’t know.”

“Already you’re assuming we’ll save her,” Tane said. “That’s what I like about you.”

“Of course,” Nebb said. “So you won’t tell her?”

“Never,” Tane said.

Nebb bowed slightly, and left his side.

Tane returned his attention to the glowing forest as he continued the march.

8

Soon, ancient metal spires began to jut up from the jungle surface, joining the trees in their domination of the landscape. Invariably, those spires were choked out by foliage, and almost hidden. They disappeared when Tane didn’t look at them head-on, so that the enclosing plants seemed to cling to empty air at the corners of his vision.

“We’re getting closer to the ancient city,” Lyra said.

Thanks to Tiberius, Tane remembered those spires in their primes, decorated with the glowing vines of the archaeoceti. And the beautiful grazers that had spanned the valley beyond them.

Where were they now? Did either still exist in this universe?

And what were those ghostly entities that had attacked during the storm? The native inhabitants of the Khaeota? If so, maybe they had killed off the archaeoceti when they had entered this universe fully. Or maybe the entities were what the sentient plants had evolved into.

Both were troubling thoughts.

He was glad for the walk through that jungle, because while it was wearying in and of itself, it allowed him to rest his mind, Essence wise. After about an hour, he felt like he was back to at least seventy percent of his former self.

Shortly thereafter the canopy began to recede, allowing the sunlight to illuminate the area in bigger swaths; meanwhile the spires became more common, until even the thick undergrowth could no longer hide them, and it became obvious the team had fully entered the ancient archaeoceti colony. The sparks leading from Tane’s body had become more substantial, and stretched farther in front of him.

He was getting closer to whatever it was he was tethered to.

Glowing vines began to outcompete the undergrowth around them, so that soon the climbing plants were everywhere, covering the forest floor like thick cables, and girding the metal structures in spirals all the way to the top. The vines glowed brighter than all the other undergrowth combined; however, like Tane and the others, the plants also seemed slightly translucent, as if they didn’t entirely belong. Some of the vines growing along the forest floor had pulsing appendages that reached waist high, and seemed to sway though there was no breeze.

“I don’t like this,” Gia said. “It feels like these plants could move at any moment and wrap around us.”

“If this is an archaeoceti, then yes, they can,” Lyra said.

“Gall, is this an archaeoceti?” Tane asked.

“You tell me,” G’allanthamas said. “You’re the one with the actual memories of these aliens.”

“I think it is,” Tane said.

“Keep in mind, if that’s true, then this is only a small part of the entity,” G’allanthamas said. “The remaining portion of the creature will reside deep underground, the roots spread throughout the area. Likely the entire city.”

“I assumed that by entering this universe entirely, the archaeoceti would have evolved into something more like pure energy,” Tane said. “I thought they’d have to. I wasn’t expecting a physical form.”

“You forget that we dwellers hail from a separate universe as well,” G’allanthamas said. “And we are not pure energy, as you can tell.”

“Actually, I suspect Tane is right,” Lyra said. “I think that what appear to be glowing vines to our eyes are in fact tendrils belonging to a being of pure energy—the archaeoceti is only presenting itself in a physical form for our benefit. An attempt at communication perhaps.”

“Well that’s all well and good,” Nebb said. “But the question boils down to, how do we communicate with them?”

“That I don’t know,” Lyra admitted.

Nebb glanced at Tane. “So what’s next? Do we keep going? Or are you going to surprise us, and show us how to communicate with these things?”

“I have no idea how to communicate with it,” Tane said. “Our only choice is to continue onward. Hopefully, when we find the source of the sparks, we’ll find some answers.”

“You think you’ll find an artifact of some kind?” Gia said. “One that will give you memories?”

“I really don’t know,” Tane said.

They walked across those vines, and between the spires, for a good ten minutes.

And then they found themselves in a clearing girded by several spires. There, the waist-high appendages from the vines interlocked to form a hammock of sorts for a large piece of bone. It looked like a spinal column segment taken from one of the grazer skeletons Tane had seen shortly after arriving on the planet in his own universe.

The sparks leading from him were at their longest and most visible yet, and converged on that elevated bone, seeming to sink inside it.

Tane stared at the gray-white object in confusion.

He wasn’t sure what he was hoping for. Maybe a dark artifact left behind by Tiberius, or something similar like Gia had mentioned. But certainly not this.

“We came all this way for a piece of bone?” Nebb said, giving voice to the disappointment that Tane, and probably everyone else, felt.

“Or in your case, a piece of ass,” Gia said.

“I like your girlfriend, Jed,” Nebb commented.

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Jed told him.

“Oh good, then I can have her,” Nebb said.

“I’m not into spineless men,” Gia said.

“Spineless?” Nebb said. “Spineless! The very fact that I’m here should prove I’m not spineless.”

“Quiet, please,” Lyra said. “Tane, ask your dweller friend if it’s possible there might be memories contained in that object.”

“Why don’t you ask me yourself?” G’allanthamas said. “I’m right here.”

“Well Gall, what do you think?” Tane pressed.

“I don’t know,” the dweller said. “I don’t believe there are any memories inside the bone. I’ve never heard of such a thing. But I suppose touching it is worth a try, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“It kind of is,” Tane said.

Now that he was here, he might as well at least try to touch the gray object. What was the worst that could happen? Actually, now that he thought about it, he might well get sucked into another universe. It had happened before after all, when he’d first touched a dark lens in the Umbra.

Yet this wasn’t a dark lens.

There was no way to reach the bone without stepping onto the springy hammock formed by the vines. Tane tentatively placed his boot onto one of the elevated plant sections, but without anything to grab onto, he couldn’t pull himself up.

Beside him, Lyra held out a hand and he gripped it. That did it: he used her arm for balance as he hauled himself onto the lifted vines.

They held his weight.

With his arms outstretched, he slowly made his way across the interlinked appendages. The vines essentially formed a net, with the diamond-shaped holes between the lattices of that net quite wide, and it required effort on his part not to fall through. He bounced up and down with each step: it was a little like walking on a trampoline.

“Should we follow?” Gia asked.

“No,” Tane replied. “Stay where you are, for now. I don’t think I could balance if there were other people on here shaking it.”

The smell of the vines was different here, Tane noticed. Erotic, somehow. Spicy. And… eager?

That last thought made him shudder.

He finally reached the bone and extended a hand to touch it. The sparks traveled from his fingertips and directly into the gray surface.

Tane paused a moment before making contact.

Well, this is it.

He opened his gloved fingers and touched the surface. Nothing happened.

“Anything?” Lyra asked.

“Not at thing,” Tane answered.

He removed his glove and tried placing his bare hand on the surface.

Of course nothing happened. What was he expecting? To have all the power and knowledge of the lost archaeoceti flowing through his body? This was just dead bone. And the archaeoceti were dead along with it. These vines beneath him may have once been sentient, but after coming to the Khaeota, the archaeoceti had obviously de-evolved.

He replaced his glove. For a moment, he couldn’t turn around to face the others. He couldn’t reveal to them the crushing disappointment he felt. Because it meant Sinive was gone, and she wasn’t coming back. All of this, coming here, running from the Amaranth, escaping the ghostly creatures, it had been for nothing.

Sinive was dead.

He raised a gloved fist to his open faceplate and pressed it to his mouth in anguish. He felt the fabric digging into his lower lip, and he relished in the pain, a distraction from his sorrow.

“Tane, are you all right?” Lyra said.

He quickly removed his fist from his mouth and straightened. He took a few moments to compose himself, and then said: “I’m fine.”

He turned back toward Lyra and the others, who were still waiting beyond the net of appendages. “I don’t know what to say. There’s nothing here.”

“But what about the sparks?” Gia said.

“What about them?” Tane said. “There’s obviously power here. And maybe I can use it. But I don’t know how. And there’s no one to teach me. There’s no point. Not anymore. Not to anything.”

He felt the grief threatening to overwhelm him again, and he lost his balance and fell back against the bone. He bounced away, and landed sideways on the net. He rotated to lie flat, looking up at the bone, and the sky beyond.

This was all pointless.

As he lay there, his thoughts began to darken, moving from sorrow to vengeance. S’Wraathar was out there. The being that had killed Sinive. Tane would destroy that creature. Giving it a slow, painful death, if he could help it.

And then when he was done, he would move on to all the other dwellers. The TSN had been right to destroy their homeworld. The only mistake had been in not destroying them all.

“Doomwielder, rise,” G’allanthamas was saying over the comm.

Tane felt a flash of rage. G’allanthamas was a hated dweller, too.

Tane sat up, and shot an angry glare in the alien’s direction.

He realized as he did so that there had been an urgent undertone to the dweller’s voice. And now he knew why.

There were several dark smears floating above Tane. They were slowly inching their way toward him.

“I can’t deflect them,” G’allanthamas said. “I don’t know why. Only slow them. It’s some property of this place. You have to move out of the way.”

Tane rolled aside, and the works of Fingers of Ruin sped up, as if G’allanthamas had released whatever work of Deflect he had created, and the dark smears slammed into the bone. No dark veins appeared, nor any cracks: the gray object simply absorbed them.

Tane scrambled upright on the uneven net of vines beneath him and drew his beam hilt; he ran his gaze across the plant-covered spires that surrounded the clearing, searching for the source of the attack.

A black distortion tunnel opened immediately behind G’allanthamas, and S’Wraathar stepped through, covered in a protective sphere of Dark Essence, fiery black pole-ax exploding from the Dark beam hilt equivalent the alien held in one tentacle. The dweller was just as translucent as Tane and the others.

The Graaz’dhen Amaranth struck outward with two powerful forelegs and promptly rolled G’allanthamas over.

S’Wraathar swung the unnatural pole-ax down to finish the job.

Tane was too far away to save his friend. He was going to watch G’allanthamas die.

9

Tane watched helplessly as time seemed to slow, and that blade inched ever close to his alien friend’s environmental suit.

But then Lyra was there, and she intercepted S’Wraathar’s Dark haft with her own made of White. Time snapped back to its original pace as the two fought in a blur of Dark and White, with Lyra employing intricate ax forms he had never before seen. She carried her scepter in her right hand, and occasionally unleashed Essence Missiles at the dweller, as well as Persistent Flame fanned by Air Current. It would have been breathtaking to watch, if it weren’t for the fact that Tane was consumed by anger. Most was directed at S’Wraathar, of course, but a good portion was also reserved for Lyra.

How dare she take away my vengeance!

If she was struck down in that moment by the alien, he wouldn’t have shed any tears.

“World Bender, we need you!” Gia said.

Tane realized then that other Amaranth had been pouring through the distortion tunnel while Lyra and S’Wraathar fought.

But Tane didn’t care. He had eyes only for the two of them.

More smears of unreality were homing in on him, but Chase must have slowed them with Deflect. Tane dodged between those, and leaped nimbly between the different vine appendages composing the net below him, until he reached the edge and leaped off.

He froze in place as a dweller placed a work of Dark Hand upon him, but it dissipated a moment later, thanks to a Deflect work from either Chase or G’allanthamas.

Jed materialized at intervals as his Chrysalium sword hacked through the protective environments of different dwellers, and he managed to take down two of them before he was caught in an invisible vice and pounded into the ground. Neither Chase nor G’allanthamas could help him, since all of their efforts were evidently directed at Tane, who was drawing the brunt of the enemy Essence attacks. Lyra couldn’t help either, seeing as she was currently occupied by S’Wraathar.

Tane leaped to her side and added his blade to hers. Together they fended off the big dweller and forced it back. Though Tane didn’t know any of the fancy blade forms that Lyra employed, he made up for it with the sheer ferocity of his attack. Hatred, when properly harnessed, could grant one great strength.

Unfortunately, brute force wasn’t the best approach against a foe like this, and Tane nearly lost his arm when that black pole ax slipped through his defenses. If Lyra hadn’t diverted her attack to save him, he would have certainly been maimed.

Lyra’s diverted attack gave the dweller an opening, and he punched outward with several tentacles, striking her spacesuit in the chest assembly. Lyra was sent flying across the clearing, landing on the vine net. She didn’t get up.

Tane was left to face the dweller alone.

S’Wraathar focused on him. If Tane didn’t know better, he would have thought that sideways-oriented maw was grinning.

The black pole-ax came swinging down on Tane, who narrowly deflected it. One of the dweller’s forelegs shot out, catching him in the same manner as Lyra a moment ago, and Tane was flung backward. He landed on the bouncing net. His chest flared with pain: the wind had been literally knocked out of him.

He started to rise, but S’Wraathar had leaped in an arc to follow Tane’s backward motion, and was already on him.

Tane deactivated his beam hilt so that he could roll to the side without maiming himself. He kept his arms wrapped closed to his chest, so that they wouldn’t catch in any of the gaps in the net. He felt the surface underneath him bounce up and down as S’Wraathar landed.

Tane scrambled to his feet and backed away, setting his feet carefully on the elevated latticework of vines.

S’Wraathar stepped forward menacingly; the dweller placed his big legs right through the gaps in the net, and thus didn’t have to worry about balancing at all.

Tane reactivated his Essence ax, but continued backing away. A plan had come to him.

Gia, Nebb and Positron fired at those among the dwellers that were in environmental suits, and thus not Amaranth. Meanwhile Lyra was back on her feet, as was Jed, and with Chase and G’allanthamas they concentrated their attacks against the Amaranth.

S’Wraathar disturbed the net with one foot, attempting to make Tane lose his balance, but Tane hurried to the bone at the center of the vines and propped himself against it. There he waited.

Up until that point, S’Wraathar hadn’t yet placed all of his legs inside the gaps. His first four legs were within those gaps, but the last four remained beyond.

Come on. Get closer.

S’Wraathar put his next two legs into gaps between the net’s latticework.

That was good enough for Tane’s purposes.

He released two large Essence Missiles.

S’Wraathar tried to dodge, but the net ensnared him and the alien succeeded only in tripping. The Essence Missiles struck his protective environment, but the dweller stopped them in time with Deflect. The slowed Missiles quickly dissipated before striking any tentacles or the carapace beyond.

It was only a matter of time until S’Wraathar exhausted all the Deflect works placed in reserve, so Tane released two more Essence Missiles, these ones slightly weaker so that he wouldn’t exhaust himself too quickly.

The first one dissipated like the previous, but the second one managed to penetrate deep enough to singe one of the tentacles.

He launched more Missiles, but these slowed and disappeared before touching the outer Dark Essence shell: evidently one of S’Wraathar’s minions must have paused in the battle against the others to use Deflect, saving his master.

This time Tane unleashed Persistent Flame, allowing it to flare out in front of him. But the fire didn’t penetrate the protective shell of Dark Essence—lucky for the dweller, because it would have ignited the liquid hydrocarbon environment inside. Fueled by the surrounding atmosphere, the explosion wouldn’t have been pretty.

S’Wraathar cut down with his pole ax, frantically trying to free himself of the ensnaring vines.

Tane Siphoned the Dark to mitigate the exhaustion he felt creeping up his bones, and then prepared two more Essence Missiles, allowing these to grow as big as he was capable of handling before releasing them. They were large, level four works, thanks to the Feral Necklace he wore.

S’Wraathar was able to dodge one of them, since he had cut through half the vines, but the other penetrated the Dark Essence sphere and struck him squarely in the carapace. A huge, black gaping wound appeared, and S’Wraathar collapsed amid the vines. He dropped the C’Havar beam hilt, but somehow managed to maintain his protective environment.

Wanting S’Wraathar to suffer, Tane walked forward casually. Now that the alien had ceased struggling, Tane was able to readily navigate the vines forming the net’s latticework. He approached his foe, and waved the Essence ax menacingly in his hand.

He launched another Essence Missile. S’Wraathar thrust out with his legs at the last moment, lifting up half of his trapped body, but the Missile still singed the right half of his carapace, and scorched the top outer halves of the four legs there.

That’s right. Suffer. As Sinive did.

The others continued to fight around him, but he didn’t pay attention. All of his being was focused on the alien who had killed his woman.

The protective environment burst before Tane reached S’Wraathar, and all the petrol-smelling yellow liquid it contained flowed out onto the ground. S’Wraathar’s sideways-oriented maw opened and closed in seeming agony as the gills on the right sides of his head clenched tight.

Tane smirked as he looked down at his hated enemy. Was it time to end it?

No. Let him suffer more. Let him choke. The same death he had planned for me.

Hideous laughter abruptly emitted from the voice box at the base of the alien’s maw. It sounded part gargle.

The black Essence blade exploded from underneath the dweller: S’Wraathar had surreptitiously retrieved it, and swung it upward in a death blow.

Tane barely lowered his own White ax in time, and the force of the impact sent him backward so that he was lying on his back on the vine net.

The protective environment returned around S’Wraathar, replete with liquid hydrocarbons inside. The alien had evidently lowered the protective environment to lull Tane into a sense of complacency, to make him think the dweller was done.

Should have killed him quickly when I had the chance.

S’Wraathar swept the blade down in a wide sweep in front of his body. Tane launched another final Essence Missile, but with that last sweep S’Wraathar had freed himself completely from the vines that snared him, and he leaped to the side. The alien was still badly injured—that much was obvious from the odd limping crab-walk the dweller exhibited.

S’Wraathar produced a dark rock and threw it directly at Tane, who scrambled out of the way.

Tane’s leg slipped through the net and snagged him in the process.

The rock became bright red as it struck the ground just in front of Tane.

He pulled himself from the net and scrambled backward, toward the far side of the elevated vines as molten creatures emerged from the ground, between the vine net. They quickly solidified into solid gray masses, humanoid in shape, twice the size of an ordinary man. There were eight of them, with molten red eyes all fixed on Tane.

They began to walk forward, breaking through the vines.

Tane lowered his Essence ax and fired a bolt from the tip at the closest. It left a dark blast crater in the surface, but otherwise didn’t stop the creature.

Jed leaped into one of them from the side, bashing it with his Chrysalium sword, but it beat him away.

Tane tried an Essence Missile, and that allowed him to melt away the whole right side of one of the creatures, stopping it. But that last Missile put Tane over the edge, and he was close to stepping out of the Essence entirely. He could maintain the Essence ax, but no more.

It would have to do. He found himself unable to continue holding onto the Dark Essence, however, and though he’d feel even more tired when he let go, he had no choice.

He staggered as the Dark left him, keeping his gaze upon the big rock creatures that were bearing toward him. Still retreating, he reached the far side of the clearing, and stepped off the elevated net of vines and onto the ground proper—which was sheathed in more of the glowing plants, of course. His companions were trapped on the opposite side of the clearing, separated from Tane by the creatures.

Actually scratch that: one of his companions was at his side.

Jed.

“Are you ready, World Bender?” Jed said.

“No,” Tane said.

“Good, because neither am I.”

The two watched the rock creatures cut through the vines in their approach. Tane still had Essence Sight active, and he cast out with it to make sure he wouldn’t be attacked from behind. Good thing he did that, because he spotted more rock creatures stepping between the spires that bordered the clearing at their backs. S’Wraathar had likely created them before the battle began.

Well, either way, Tane and Jed were surrounded.

“We’re going to have to fight back to back,” Tane said.

“As I prefer,” Jed said. “Try not to get in the way.”

“You too,” Tane said.

In moments the creatures were upon them. Tane inflicted big red slashes into those gray chests, melting through the rock with his Essence ax. Jed meanwhile shattered the gray stone with impacts from his Chrysalium sword. The two of them flowed forward and backward, left and right, playing off of one another. Tane occasionally had to roll to the ground or step aside to dodge a blow, but Jed was always there to make sure he wasn’t struck from behind. When Jed dodged in turn, Tane paid him back in kind. It helped that the rock entities were essentially defenseless—if they wielded their own Essence ax variants, the battle wouldn’t have gone so smoothly, given Tane’s relative inexperience with ax forms.

Together they made short work of the creatures, so that in under thirty seconds, Tane and Jed were surrounded by piles of shapeless rock, some of it with molten edges.

Tane glanced across the clearing. All of the rock creatures had concentrated their attacks upon Tane and Jed, leaving his companions to defend against the aliens. He saw that his friends had taken cover behind different features of the square: some hid within rocks covered in vines, others behind the spires themselves.

Most of the Amaranth had retreated to the far side of the clearing, where they sheltered beyond the spires, and peered past to launch energy launchers. Both sides had given up on Essence weapons—the Amaranth had exhausted their reserves, as had G’allanthamas, while Lyra and Chance had exhausted themselves, period.

Positron was still in the clearing, crouched behind the stasis pod, using it for cover.

The sight filled Tane with a sudden rage.

How dare he use her body for cover!

He leaped forward.

“Tane!” Jed said.

But Tane ignored him, and raced through the path the rock creatures had carved through the vines. An energy launcher struck his autogating shield.

Shield strength, 50%.

His companions launched suppressive fire from pistols and rifles to keep the enemies at bay.

S’Wraathar emerged from where he was hiding near the stasis pod and leaped upon Positron, bashing the robot into a nearby spire. Positron slid to the ground, unmoving. There was a large dent in the scepter’s chest area.

The wounded dweller activated his pole-ax and cut it across the top of the stasis pod, exposing Sinive.

Tane watched in horror as S’Wraathar reached inside with his tentacles and hauled out her dead body.

“Pathetic!” S’Wraathar said via his voice box.

Despite the fact that several dwellers were still out there, ready to unleash their energy launchers the moment the suppressive fire laid down by his companions let up, Tane ran forward.

He wasn’t going to watch idly as Sinive was desecrated yet again. Wasn’t going to watch as further indignities were inflicted upon her body. S’Wraathar had already killed her. Wasn’t that enough?

Tane cranked up his servomotors to the highest setting and came at S’Wraathar with his White ax swinging.

The dweller dropped Sinive to parry the attack. The creature seemed taken aback by the ferocity of his assault, and actually retreated under the onslaught.

Tane moved his arms in a blur, feeding on the anger. He let the rage flow through his being, accompanying the Essence that scraped across his bones, and allowed it to suffuse his limbs with energy and speed.

S’Wraathar continued to retreat under the blows, backing toward one of the spires that bordered the clearing. It probably helped that the alien was already severely wounded from Tane’s earlier Essence Missiles.

And then Tane managed to break through S’Wraathar’s guard, and he sliced away the limb that wielded the beam hilt. It was either due to luck, Tane’s rage, or S’Wraathar’s diminished condition, or perhaps a combination of all three. But he disarmed the creature.

The sheath of Dark Essence that surrounded the dweller shut off once more, and the liquid hydrocarbons splashed onto the ground.

S’Wraathar’s eight legs immediately buckled and he fell before Tane as if kneeling. A dark, foul-smelling liquid oozed from his rear section—the equivalent of voiding his bowels. Black blood oozed from his legs, his severed tentacle, and the craters the Essence Missiles had carved into his carapace.

S’Wraathar lay before Tane in a quivering, ugly mass. While he may have been playacting before when his Dark Essence field went down, S’Wraathar was plainly beaten now. A bloody, tired mess, incapable of lifting another limb in defense.

“Please,” S’Wraathar said through the voice box. “Don’t kill me.” Like G’allanthamas, his words were sourced from different human speakers, with dialects that didn’t match.

But Tane hardly heard. He lifted his Essence ax coldly.

Jed leaped to his side. The Volur’s shield flashed into existence as he took a blast from one of the other aliens that was meant for Tane; with his glowing pistol, Jed returned fire at the source. “If you’re going to kill him, then kill him!”

“Please,” S’Wraathar said. He clenched his bifurcated mandibles.

Inexplicably, Tane hesitated. Why was he feeling pity? This was the creature who had taken Sinive’s life. If any being in this universe deserved death, it was S’Wraathar.

Tane thought of all the people he had personally killed on Xalantas after he’d lost control. None of them deserved to die. They were members of the TSN. Good men and women. Merely following their orders. They had no chance given the powers he was wielding at the time, and yet he hadn’t batted an eye when he had killed them. And what of the civilians hiding in the buildings he had razed? He hadn’t felt remorse for any of them.

And yet he hesitated now.

He wanted to do it so badly. He had imagined that when the time came, S’Wraathar would be taunting him, daring him to do the deed. But he had never imagined this, that the proud alien would be begging for his life.

Tane simply couldn’t do it. Not even to the worst of his enemies. No matter how much S’Wraathar deserved an ignoble death.

He remembered Lyra’s words during the journey here, when he had told her how much he wanted vengeance against the dwellers.

Killing them won’t bring her back. In fact, you’re doing the only thing that will bring her back.

And yet it was Lyra whose words egged him on next. What she said truly shocked him, given how at odds it was to her previous comments, and her personality in general.

“Do it!” Lyra said. “Show no mercy!”

10

Tane almost cut off that grotesque, bloody head at Lyra’s prompting. Almost, because he hadn’t realized how much the Volur’s approval still meant to him, even after everything. She was his mentor, like Jed. Someone to look up to. Someone to be obeyed.

Instead, he stepped back and lowered the beam hilt. He prepared to step out of the Essence to release the White blade.

“That one killed my sister!” Lyra said. “Destroy it!”

The words stunned him to the core, and rage once more replaced any pity he felt. Lyra’s sister. Sinive. S’Wraathar definitely deserved to die.

“Please,” S’Wraathar said. “Forgive me.” His tentacles lowered and folded together, and his head tilted far forward: it was the dweller equivalent of submission. “I’ll change. I will! We all deserve a second chance!”

Those words struck a chord inside Tane. Lucky for the dweller that he had only just been talking about such things with Nebb.

All anger left Tane, replaced by a weariness that seemed like it would bow his shoulders for all eternity. And it wasn’t a weariness rooted in Essence alone, but rather the burdens of being human, and everything that came with it: Mercy. Empathy. Second chances.

Tane stepped out of the Essence and the White ax disappeared.

Everything seemed to happen all at once then.

“Fool!” S’Wraathar moved in a blur. He kicked out one foot: Jed, who had still been standing beside Tane, was sent sprawling backward. A black pole-ax exploded forth, sourced from a beam hilt stealthily retrieved either from the ground or somewhere else on the dweller’s person, the deadly blade on a collision course with Tane’s chest assembly.

Tane knew he wouldn’t be able to dodge it in time, or deflect it.

He frantically stepped into the Essence, hoping to find the strength to create an Essence Missile or something else that might stop the weapon, but he knew it was futile. Ordinary Essenceworks passed right through the energy blades created by beam hilts. The best he could hope for was that he might succeed in killing S’Wraathar, too.

But the Essence refused to let him step inside.

Tane was the only one who would die today.

Maybe it was for the best.

He’d join Sinive.

But an instant before the weapon struck, glowing green vines wrapped around the tentacle that wielded the beam hilt and arrested its motion.

S’Wraathar paused, twisting his sideways-oriented head in confusion.

Sparks, like those that emerged from Tane’s body, erupted from the vines all around him. Those sparks were connected to the large bone in the center of the clearing. He had the impression the sparks were coming from the bone, rather than the other way around.

More vines arose, wrapping around S’Wraathar. The alien screeched some wild, unintelligible command, and the dwellers that remained in cover fired their energy launchers at the vines, and the bone segment. The bolts tore easily through the vines, but more always arose to replace them. And the launchers did no damage at all to the gray osseous at the center of the clearing.

The vines kept rising, and emerald sparks continued to flow from the bone, suffusing the vines, and Tane. He felt a strange, heightened sense of well being and pleasure.

In moments S’Wraathar was completely wrapped up by the plants, as were the other Amaranth. The vines crept right through the Dark Essence fields that sheathed them, penetrating the liquid hydrocarbon environments to ensnare the alien limbs within. Those environments remained intact despite the violation—S’Wraathar alone among the Amaranth had no Essence field.

The glowing plants also wrapped around the arms and legs of the members in Tane’s party. The vines enveloped their jaws, preventing them from talking. But they could still breathe.

Only Tane himself remained completely free.

The bound individuals on both sides struggled against their binds, but they could not break away from the living trammels.

One of the vines lifted the pistol Jed had dropped. It carried the weapon toward Tane, with the muzzle facing away from him. The glowing limb held the pistol there in front of him, seeming expectant. Tane extended a hand: the vine deposited it in his gloved palm, and then beckoned toward S’Wraathar, inviting him to kill the alien.

Tane considered doing just that, as payment for S’Wraathar’s latest treachery. He aimed the weapon at the alien and wrapped his finger around the trigger. He wanted to squeeze. He had given S’Wraathar his second chance after all, and the alien had betrayed him. He realized that there were no second chances for a creature like S’Wraathar.

But Tane let the weapon drop.

“I have no interest in killing this alien,” Tane announced to whoever was watching and orchestrating all of this. He glanced at Sinive’s body, where she lay on the ground untouched nearby. At least the vines had the courtesy not to defile her body by handling her. Unlike S’Wraathar.

“It won’t bring her back,” Tane said. “Maybe nothing can. It is rumored the archaeoceti have a way. This is why I’m here. You are one of the archaeoceti, presumably? And this is some test on your part?”

He waited, but received no answer. He wasn’t sure if the vines could even understand him. Probably not. He remembered that the language in Tiberius’ day was vastly different from today’s. The memories Tiberius had given him had somehow activated the appropriate portions of his mind so that Tane could understand. He hoped the archaeoceti could do something similar. They were advanced enough to evolve into a higher state, after all, a state that allowed them to leave behind their home universe—Tane’s universe—entirely.

He tried an ID on the vines, but of course he got nothing.

As he waited for something to happen, S’Wraathar slumped in the vines that held him, and made a gurgling sound. The alien was finally succumbing to the effects of exposure to this atmosphere.

But then the Dark Essence field appeared around S’Wraathar a moment later, with the liquid hydrocarbons he needed inside, and the gills lining his head relaxed. The alien remained slumped, however. Perhaps unconscious.

Tane cast his gaze across the other Amaranth. No doubt one of them had saved S’Wraathar. A loyal minion.

Tane stepped back as the glowing vines just in front of him began to rise. Good. Finally some response from these archaeoceti, or whatever entity this was.

The vines began to take on a humanoid shape. Female features formed, sensual in shape, and allure. Breasts. Hips. Facial features and hair. Skin appeared over those vines, along with robes, so that it seemed a human woman stood before him. She still glowed, however.

Her face portrayed a classic beauty: high cheekbones, deep-set eyes, a button nose, plump lips. Long, flowing black hair

“Welcome, Qumolongmar,” a female voice said. It oozed sensuality. “He Who Crosses Life and Death. Wearer of the Bone Crown. Death Walker.”

Tane studied the vine woman suspiciously. Yes, even though she appeared human, he purposely thought of her as the vine woman to remind himself that she was not. Then again, that iridescent glow was probably all the reminder needed. As usual, his ID returned nothing.

He glanced uncertainly at his companions and the Amaranth bound nearby, conscious that they were all within earshot. Did he really want the dwellers to hear this?

The vine woman recognized his concern immediately. “They can’t hear us. Their auditory equivalents are suffused with white noise at the moment.”

He positioned his body so that the vine woman blocked him from view of the others. He didn’t want anyone reviewing any videos recorded by their chips and employing lip reading algorithms to reverse engineer what he said. What happened here today was between him and the archaeoceti. If he chose to reveal the knowledge to his friends later, that would be his prerogative, but he definitely didn’t want the Amaranth to hear.

“So, you give me all these fancy names, yet you have no idea who I am,” Tane said.

She smiled patiently. “You have the Ability inside of you. The Khaeota does not lie.” She beckoned toward the sparks streaming from his body toward the bone. “No others of your kind have this. Nor do those of the Dark.”

“All right, you got me,” Tane said. “Then to whom do I address?”

She remained silent.

“You’ve taken on a human shape, and yet you are not human...” Tane told the iridescent being, in an attempt to get her to talk.

“A form you are comfortable with,” the woman said. “Something you can understand. I am Tepethalean. An archaeoceti, as you call us. I have watched you closely since your arrival. I was hoping I would not be the one to speak with you, hoping that the duty would fall to another, but there are no others left in this particular province. We once numbered billions. Now, we are under a million, scattered throughout this region of space. We have waited for you since the last with your abilities arrived. Waited in dread and anticipation. And now that you have come, the universe very much needs you, that much is clear. We will keep our promise to He Who Came Before.”

“How does the universe ‘need’ me?” Tane said.

She didn’t answer.

“Well, it doesn’t matter anyway,” Tane said. “As I told you earlier, I’m here to save the woman I brought with me. That’s the only thing I care about right now. Can you revive her?”

The glowing being cocked an eyebrow. “I can do more than that. I can give you the means to do the reviving yourself. That you would show mercy to your most hated enemy, the one who took away that which you love most, proves that you are worthy of our greatest gift.”

Tane frowned. “Show mercy... you arranged all of this, didn’t you? So that the dweller and I would fight. This was all some twisted test on your part?”

“I allowed him to enter my domain and pursue you, yes,” the woman said. “Once the two of you set foot in my territory, I could have stopped you at any time. The other archaeoceti and I argued for centuries on how we would properly test your worthiness, but none of us could have devised a better assessment of your character than the scenario that played out before me. Yes, this was a test. And you passed. Spectacularly.”

Tane wondered if he would have passed the test if Tepethalean had seen what he had done in the immediate aftermath of Sinive’s death. Probably not.

“That you have shown mercy to your enemy is not the only quality that proves you are worthy of our powers,” the woman continued. “I’ve been watching you since you entered this realm. You’re willing to place the life of another ahead of your own. Or the potential for life, in any case, seeing as the one you protected is already dead. I saw you fighting for her when the storm came. The willingness to sacrifice the self is a quality you must have if you are to lead the fight to save our universe.”

Again Tepethalean only had it half right. He was willing to sacrifice himself for Sinive, yes, but not necessarily anyone else.

But he wasn’t about to tell her that, so instead he said: “I don’t want to lead.” Which was true enough.

“But lead you must,” the woman said.

Tane shook his head. “When I save her, the two of us will go into hiding somewhere on the far side of the galaxy. Or even another galaxy would be preferable.”

“You pretend to be selfish,” the woman said. “And yet here you are, braving death, braving the odds at all costs. Your false facade does not mask the true self I see inside.”

11

Tane bit back a caustic reply. He had to be careful how much he revealed about himself, lest she refuse to grant him the power he sought. Let her think he was her fabled Qumolongmar, and all the mystical qualities she associated with it. If she believed he left a trail of flower petals wherever his feet touched the ground, all the better, as long as it meant he could have Sinive back. Tepethalean would be sorely disappointed at some point when she realized the truth, but by then, Tane would be far away from this place.

She was staring at him with those piercing blue eyes, so he asked another question that was on his mind.

“What about those ghosts we fought?” Tane asked. “Part of your test, too? To delay my team so you could arrange the fight between S’Wraathar and me? Or something you did just so you could explore my willingness to sacrifice myself, as you described it.”

“No, those ‘ghosts’ are the very scourge of my people,” Tepethalean said. “Responsible for the drastic drop in our numbers. We call them the Malediction.”

“The Malediction?” Tane said. “They’re native to this universe?”

“They are no more native than we are,” Tepethalean said. “But some of us believe that by migrating here, we opened the way for the Malediction to follow: we left a trail that was visible to those that knew what to look for. In any case, we lived in tranquility for a hundred years. Lived and prospered. But then they arrived…”

The vine woman shook her head. “We came here seeking peace. Instead we found war. For the Malediction wanted this universe, and its Essence, all to themselves. They attacked not only us, but the native life of this universe, wiping out many species. They are a plague, taking rather than giving, leeching energy from everything they touch. They have spread to nearly every planet. We’ve waged war against them for centuries. And we are losing. Their rise mirrors that of the Gravity Heathens.”

Tane regarded her uncertainly. “The Gravity Heathens? That sounds similar to another race I’ve heard of…”

Tepethalean nodded. “The Dark Dwellers call them Z’Antamaraan: the Gravity Born. Other species that feed on gravity and pure energy, such as the Malediction, have prospered with their rise. The same clan of Z’Antamaraan exist simultaneously throughout all galactic cores spread across our home universe. They are drawing the suns of every galaxy into their respective cores, expanding the super massive black holes that sit at their centers. We don’t know why. We have speculated that they come from a higher universe, and perhaps seek to absorb the energy of our universe into their own. But we don’t know for certain: like the Malediction, their reasoning is impossible to truly fathom. We can’t communicate with them, let alone understand their alien mindsets.

“We originally left our home universe to escape not just the threat of the dwellers, but the Gravity Heathens. There are some among us that want to go back, now that we’ve led the Malediction here. But we would merely be buying ourselves time. All too soon, our home universe will be gone, thanks to the Heathens. And we’ve realized now that our original flight from our universe was perhaps pointless. Understand: even if we stay here, because we are from the same universe as you, we will die if our universe dies. Unless you can defeat the Gravity Heathens, Wearer of the Bone Crown.”

“Look,” Tane said. “I’m not who you think I am. Prophecies are all fake, you know that by now, don’t you? No one can predict the future. Even Tiberius—He Who Came Before—admitted to me in one of his memories that he knew it was inevitable another person like him would eventually be born, as long as we humans continued to mate the old fashioned way. It’s how natural selection works among my kind. You know, gene polymorphism and mutation, all that fun stuff. But that was the extent of his ‘prophecy.’ He knew his words would be twisted and transformed down the ages into something unrecognizable. We all like to believe that someone will come and save us all. It’s a great fantasy. But most of the time, the only person we can count on to do the saving is ourselves.”

He realized as the words left his lips that he may have said too much. He was supposed to be doing whatever he could to convince the archaeoceti to give him the power to raise Sinive. He hoped he hadn’t ruined things.

The glowing woman looked at him speculatively. “You say that the only person you can count on to save you is yourself, and yet you are here to save another.”

“Well, I meant in general,” Tane said, stumbling. “You know what I meant...”

Tepethalean raised an eyebrow. “You won’t risk your life for strangers, is that what you’re saying? Even if failing to intervene is to your own detriment?”

Tane didn’t answer.

“You will face the Gravity Heathens,” Tepethalean said, her voice filled with certainty. “You will have no choice if you wish to save the universe you love, and those who live in it.”

“But apparently I could also destroy it,” Tane said.

He bit his lower lip.

Damn it. There I go saying the wrong thing again.

Tepethalean nodded slowly. “Why do you think I tested you when you came? I can’t give these powers to you lightly. I refuse to aide the Gravity Heathens, and their various sycophant species’ like the Malediction. Universes are not meant to be destroyed. They are alive, each and every one of them. You and I are the manifestations of a living universe. Which is why we die when our home universe dies.”

“All right, that’s a bit over my head,” Tane said. “But I’m ready for the powers now. If you still want to give them to me…”

“It would take three hundred years to train you,” Tepethalean said.

“Three hundred years?” Tane said. “Uh.”

“Fortunately for you, we have some experience with your technology,” the woman said. “He Who Came Before introduced us to the concept of your nanotech. We captured some of your kind before leaving our home universe and conducted experiments on them, substituting our own special brand of Essence for nanotech. We—”

“You used humans as guinea pigs?” Tane said, suddenly disgusted.

“It was for a good cause,” Tepethalean said. “They died cleanly. They felt no pain, only bliss: we are masters of illusion.”

“How many humans died so that you could learn to program my mind?” Tane asked.

“Over two hundred,” Tepethalean replied.

Tane couldn’t help the repulsion he felt. “This is wrong. I don’t know if I can accept this training. It’s blood training.”

“The choice is yours,” Tepethalean said. “We can spend three hundred years to share the knowledge, or you can accept the memories and receive it in a heartbeat.”

Tane gazed at Sinive’s body. She was still lying next to her stasis pod where S’Wraathar had dropped her.

He knew that of course he had to accept it. Otherwise, those two hundred humans would have died for nothing. Their deaths would bring new life.

At least that was how he appeased his conscience.

He made a promise to himself then. He would do what he could to atone for what the archaeoceti did to get this knowledge. Maybe even try to save the galaxy, like Tepethalean had asked.

Wait a second. It’s not my fault they killed a bunch of humans to learn how to program our minds. I had no hand in it. I don’t need to atone for anything, damn it.

And besides, he’d already killed at least that many humans on his own. Not to mention all the dwellers whose lives he had taken when he destroyed their invading fleet.

I have blood on my hands myself.

Still, he had had a purpose in taking those lives. At least in regards to the invading dweller fleet. Maybe not so much when he’d lost it after Sinive died, but either way, that was no reason to excuse what the archaeoceti had done.

Yes, he was conflicted.

“I’ll take the memories,” Tane said before he could change his mind. It was best not to dwell too long on matters of morality, given the questionable acts he had committed himself.

“Of course you will,” Tepethalean said. She tilted her head slightly, and the jade sparks connecting the large bone at the center of the square to her plant body began to intensify, becoming brighter, and moving into her more rapidly.

And then the spires, plants, and everything around Tane winked out.

He stood alone at the top of a mountain, gazing out across a snow covered valley. He was dressed in an ermine coat and leggings, and the cold wind bit into his exposed flesh. In his bare hand he held a grayish-yellow staff of gnarled bone.

A glowing form lingered beside him. Tepethalean.

“Greetings, Qumolongmar,” Tepethalean said. “We’ve crafted this landscape from the memories of one of our test subjects. We hope it is to your liking.”

That’s right, go and remind me about the people who died to get me this knowledge.

“It’s fine,” Tane found himself saying between chattering teeth. It was his own voice speaking, not Tiberius’. The archaeoceti had definitely created this memory specifically for him.

“We chose the cold so you would recognize the effects of the Essence immediately,” Tepethalean said.

“Excellent choice,” Tane said, shivering.

“We call the Essence derived from this universe Synthate,” Tepethalean said. “The Emerald Essence.”

“Synthate…” Tane said.

“Yes,” the vine woman told him. “It is not stellar wind, like the White. Nor generated from the friction within geodynamos, like the Dark. It simply exists here, suffusing all things, organic and inorganic. A true aether, for lack of a better word. The Malediction feed upon it, whereas we protect and revere it. Unlike other Essences you may know of, it cannot be Siphoned except through the grazers, at least for beings from our home universe, such as you and I.”

“I thought the grazers were extinct?” Tane said.

“Yes, but their bones still reside in your universe, and our own. Siphoning through them is similar to what the Volur do with Chrysalium. And the Amaranth with Darcanium. We guard the bones in this universe, because the Malediction seek them: they know that without them, we have no ability to Siphon. And to be frank, the grazers aren’t entirely extinct… they do exist in this universe, though merely as energy. Their bones serve to anchor them to this realm.”

Tane stared at the gnarled staff he held. “This is a grazer bone, I’m guessing…”

“Yes,” Tepethalean said. “In order to access the Emerald Essence through it, you will have to break the spirit of the grazer tied to that bone. Each grazer is different, and not all will yield easily. I imagine it is similar to training a horse or other animal among humans. This bone has been broken already, and will acquiesce to your commands.”

“Good to know,” Tane said. Now that he thought about it, he could almost sense an alien intelligence pulsating from the thing. He couldn’t tell if it was benevolent, or malevolent.

“Care must be taken,” Tepethalean said. “You must guard your mind well when you Siphon the pleasure and pain that is Synthate, otherwise the grazer will infiltrate the nooks and crannies of your being and begin to alter your personality, changing it to become more in line with its own. It is a side effect of the intimate connection formed between you during the act of Siphoning. And like most animals, while grazers are neither inherently good nor evil, they have been known to have streaks of cruelty. Similar behavior can be passed on to you, if you’re not careful.”

There’s always a price…

“Also, sometimes when holding the bone, you will feel the thoughts and emotions of the associated grazer. Not actual words, mind you, but feelings and images.”

Tane gazed at the bone. “I’m not getting anything now.” The words coming out of his mouth continued to be scripted, merely parts of the memory.

“Of course not,” Tepethalean said. “This is your training. We’ve designed this particular memory so that you wouldn’t have any distractions. You will have other memories where the grazer’s thoughts are pervasive, and nearly dominate you, so you will be equipped to deal with a situation like that if or when it arises.”

“So what do I do?” Tane said. “How do I Siphon this Synthate?”

“Concentrate on the staff of bone in your hand. Do not step into the Essence through it like you would the White. Do not draw through it as you would the Dark. Instead, see the bone for what it is on the microscopic level: a veil of barbed beads, covering the entrance to the true core of all things. You must slide your hand inside and part that veil. It will be painful, maybe even agonizing, as the Essence acts directly upon your nervous system, but once you are through that pain, you will eventually find the pleasure of Synthate.”

“You make it sound like a drug,” Tane said.

“In a sense, it is a drug,” Tepethalean said. “Though instead of altering the perceived reality of the mind alone, it alters reality itself. When parted, the Emerald Essence travels through the conduits of electrical potential energy that are wired throughout the body—you humans call your conduits ‘the nervous system.’ The Essence will piggyback on your ganglia, traveling throughout your body, and when that happens you can begin to wield it.”

“How do you know all of this?” Tane said. “Wouldn’t you have needed a human with the ability to part the veil as you call it so you could confirm everything?” While the words were scripted, he was having the very same thoughts.

“The humans we collected weren’t the only ones we experimented upon,” Tepethalean said. “You may not know this, but He Who Came Before offered himself up for experimentation before he left. We accepted of course. Our experiments didn’t kill him, but nearly so. We learned what we needed.”

Tane continued to be amazed at the things Tiberius had done for him. He must have really thought Tane would be important.

Too bad I’m not the man Tiberius thought I would be. Despite what Tepethalean believes.

What were the vine woman’s words?

You will face the Gravity Heathens.

Tane wouldn’t, if he could help it. He was learning this Essence only to help Sinive. And after that he was done with all Essences. He didn’t trust himself to use the power wisely, not after what he’d done on Xalantas.

He wished he could speak freely, but he was at the mercy of the memory, so he waited for whatever would come next.

His gaze focused on the bone staff. It felt bumpy to the touch, its texture slightly granular.

He realized he was about to Siphon the Emerald for the first time.

Soon the cold around him was forgotten, lost within his intense concentration upon the staff. His memories told him he had stood here on this mountaintop a thousand times before, and a thousand times before he had failed. But this time as he gazed into the osseous, he thought he could almost make out the barbed beads composing the surface at the microscopic level, and he felt something.

His hand slipped inside the gnarled staff. Not literally, of course, but metaphysically.

He parted the veil.

12

Tane staggered.

Tepethalean had been right: the pain he felt in that moment was incredible, like someone applying electricity directly into the nerve endings at the tips of his fingers, some of the the most sensitive pain receptors in the entire body. That electricity passed up into his arm, instantly spreading to the rest of him, searing his entire being. His head pounded with each heart beat, so that it felt like some creature was beating at the inside of the egg his skull had become, trying to get out. Trying to be born.

Green sparks passed across his bare fingers and down into the ermine sleeve that covered his arm. He couldn’t move any part of his body: not a finger, not a toe. His fingers clenched tighter around the staff of their own accord, the knuckles turning white. Wisps of smoke began to arise from the flesh that remained in contact with the staff.

He realized this was what it felt like to be electrocuted. The helplessness. The frying of the neurons. His heart, pounding frantically.

No, the heart was the difference: if he was truly being electrocuted, his heart would have stopped.

He couldn’t surrender to the feeling, like he did with the White. Nor could he fight it, like he did the Dark. From previous training sessions stored in his memories, he knew there was nothing he could do but ride it out.

Thankfully, the pain faded just as quickly as it had come.

And then he began to feel pleasure. It started as a sense of well being in the center of his mind, a feeling that emanated outward, down into his spine and his hips.

All around him ethereal lightning bolts appeared. Green, translucent, sparking things, flashing into and out of existence. He knew they were visible to his eyes alone.

“I feel the pleasure you mentioned,” Tane said.

“Yes, our experiments indicate that is the effect the Synthate has on human nerve tissue,” Tepethalean said. “But it is also slowly killing you while you wield it, like any other Essence.”

“What do you mean?” Tane asked.

“Once you overcome the initial pain and enter the pleasure phase, you will not experience anything else: not weariness, not agony, nothing but the pleasure. And that is the danger, because similar to White and Dark, it also drains your stamina to the core, but unlike the latter two, you simply won’t know it. You could Siphon yourself to death and die with a smile on your face as your neurons fuse.”

If it was true that he could use the Emerald to mask his weariness, that would be useful for wielding the other Essences. But also dangerous, for the very reasons Tepethalean mentioned.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Tane said.

“I’m sure you will,” Tepethalean told him.

The mountaintop momentarily winked out of existence before returning. He realized several years had passed, at least in terms of training sessions: he had memories of returning here a thousand times to practice.

He was parting the veil to the Emerald Essence through the bone staff once again. The air around him sparked with translucent, green bolts that were ready to do his bidding. Pleasure suffused his core.

“Begin the Joining,” Tepethalean said.

From previous lessons, he knew he had to interlink those electrical bolts as soon as they appeared, in the split second before they winked out. He imposed his will on two nearby bolts and elongated the tips, causing the ends to touch. When he joined the bolts, the combined pair flashed, becoming smaller, settling in the center of his vision.

He joined two more, and they shrunk, resettling near the other pair before him. He connected the pairs so that all four were interlinked. He continued in that way, adding more electrical links to the creation with each passing microsecond. It was the connections between bolts that would form an effect in this reality when the work was finally completed.

Time slowed around him as he worked—either that or he sped up—and he repeated the joining hundreds of times, thousands, tens of thousands, forming a small, coherent structure. All of the tiny electrical bolts composing it were like the interconnecting neurons of a brain, and in fact the overall shape was vaguely reminiscent of such an organic shape. Perhaps his creation was even intelligent.

When he finished, small electrical sparks traveled across the surface, and the translucent object slowly revolved. He realized it was waiting for him to set it in this reality so that its effect could take place. He felt pleasure through it all, and not a modicum of weariness; but he knew that as soon as he closed the veil on the Emerald Essence, he would collapse with exhaustion.

He began to set the work, but before he could do so, the mountainside winked out, and he was back in the vine-covered square, the spires thrusting into the sky around him, the dwellers, and his friends, bound up nearby. A glance at the clock in the lower right of his vision told him only a few seconds had passed since the memory had begun.

The jade sparks traveling from the large grazer bone at the center of the clearing to the woman in front of him dropped in intensity as he watched.

Some notifications appeared on his HUD.

New skill received.

Emerald Siphoning. Level 1.

All Emerald Siphoning Essenceworks gained.

Attribute up. Intelligence +1. Current Intelligence: 16 (29 with Beam Hilt I, Chrysalium Star Rings, Feral Necklace, Finger of Malevolence, and Nova Bracelet I equipped)

Tane could hardly contain his excitement when he saw those bolded words.

All Emerald Essenceworks gained!

All? He accessed the skill list on his HUD. There was a new tab: Emerald Essence Specific. He immediately paged over to it and read the following:

Emerald Siphoning Essenceworks

These works are created from the electrical Essence drawn from the universe known as Khaeota. Each work of this Synthate, or “Emerald” Essence, evokes a massive cost on stamina, and as such, it is recommended that only one particular Emerald work be used in a given Siphoning interval. When you have rested fully, then you may create another work.

Also note that the aforementioned stamina drain is apparent only upon the closing of the Essence veil. As such, while it might be tempting to create more works, since you will feel fine, there is a good chance you will destroy yourself.

Higher levels in each Essencework listed below increase the potency of the particular work, but at greater stamina cost.

Emerald Siphoning Level 1 Essenceworks.

Revive. Bring back the dead. A complete body is required: the corpse can be in any state, as long as the requisite pieces are relatively intact. Revive can be used only once per entity, as the spiritual bonds become stretched too thin after the first raising. If a resurrected entity falls again at some later point, their death will be permanent.

This work also opens gateways to multiple higher dimensions, attracting beings that feed on the life forces of the living. These beings, sometimes commensurate in power to the fallen but usually much stronger, will tag along for the ride and attempt to feed on the life force of the reviving entity before his or her energy can be fully bound to the body. You will have to fend them off using all means available to you. Lose, and the death of the one you are trying to revive becomes permanent.

Note that a larger than normal source of the Emerald Essence must be employed. This means you cannot use something like a bone staff—instead, you will likely require a fully intact skeleton.

However as you increase this work’s level, you can revive your allies with smaller pieces of bone. However, you must also deal with more powerful life force feeders.

Summon Grazer. Summons the grazer associated with the bone or skeleton you are Siphoning the Emerald Essence from. This will be the same grazer who in life had that bone or skeleton physically inside of it.

The grazer will assume its original shape as pure energy. The being cannot be harmed by plasma bolts, laser beams, or blunt force weapons. Only the Essence, or creatures of similar energy, can deal any sort of damage.

At higher levels, the grazer will stay with you for longer periods of time. At level one, the grazer will only remain in your universe for five minutes.

Levels 2 and above are locked until the appropriate base Emerald Siphoning level is attained.

He was a bit disappointed that “all” the Emerald Essenceworks hadn’t been gained as promised—well they had, but they were “locked.” Otherwise, he had no complaints, as he’d finally attained the ability he was looking for. The means to revive Sinive. He was very glad he had transported her body all this way, given that reviving someone required the former living vessel. And yet…

“I don’t like the part about Revive only being possible once per person,” Tane told the glowing woman.

He looked at her. Because of his memories, he knew her “human” flesh was an illusion acting on his visual cortex. If he were to touch it, the illusion would also act on his motor neurons and tactile senses, preventing him from exploring any gaps in the clumped vines underneath, so that as his fingers passed over her face he would feel something akin to the texture and smoothness of actual human skin. The archaeoceti were truly the masters of illusion. It made him wonder why she had bothered to form her vines into a human shape in the first place. Then again, that may have also been an illusion.

“You may not like it, but the Revive limitation is what it is,” Tepethalean said. “Why do you think our numbers have been dropping? We are attacked by the Malediction. And when we die, we revive one another. But we can’t do it again. And remember, in order to revive someone who is lost, you’ll need a great source of Synthate. A mere bone will not suffice. It can be difficult to find such works in the Khaeota, given what the Malediction have done here”

“I understand.” He remembered the grazer skeleton he had found at the swamp back in his own universe. That would likely suit his needs. When he parted the veil through it, he imagined the Emerald boost he’d get would be equivalent to Siphoning the White through the Chrysalium hull of a small starship.

While intact in his own universe, he supposed the individual pieces of that skeleton had been scattered throughout the Khaeota, given what Tepethalean had told him about the Malediction. He wasn’t sure what the precise rules were in regards to what items were duplicated in this universe and where those items would appear, but it was possible grazer skeletons were excluded from the rules. Then again, he hadn’t actually ventured back to the swamp to confirm whether the skeleton was still there in the Khaeota. He suspected it would be better to do the Revive in his universe anyway, where he wouldn’t have to worry about the Malediction intervening. But there was something else he’d apparently have to worry about…

“What’s this about fighting off life force feeders?” Tane said. As soon as the words left his lips, memories of an intense battle fought against terrible creatures filled his mind.

Tepethalean cocked her head. “You knew there would be a price, did you not? You thought it would be easy?”

Tane glanced at G’allanthamas, who had warned him of that price after Sinive had died. “I suppose I knew, yes.” He returned his attention to the Essence list.

He read the next item. “I can summon a grazer?”

“You will have to earn its respect,” the woman said. “It will be just as likely to attack you as help you.”

“Ah,” Tane said. “It doesn’t say anything about that in the Essencework description. And what’s this about level two and above being locked until I reach the base Siphoning level?”

“It means you have the memories inside of you already,” Tepethalean said. “You won’t have to return here to learn them. As you progress and gain experience, and level your base Emerald Siphoning skill, you’ll unlock the higher level works.”

“Just like that?” Tane said. “This is a way better system than what Tiberius set up for me.”

“This is our gift to you, Qumolongmar. Bring peace to the galaxy. Fulfill your destiny. Here.” She gave Tane a small pyramid, similar to the one he had found in the artifact Tiberius had left for him. Like the previous, the surface seemed to undulate in places. It was covered in designs that resembled fingerprints—or perhaps vines piled in whorls.

“You may use this to return if you have the need, though I do not foresee such a day,” Tepethalean said. “Your work here is done. Face the Gravity Heathens. Do your duty. It was the reason why you were born. Our home universe created you in self defense, as a means to ward off these inter-dimensional invaders. If you ignore your calling, everything you know, everything you care about, will be gone within a few centuries. Probably sooner.”

“I doubt I’ll live that long anyway,” Tane said. “At this rate.”

The woman smiled sadly.

He slid the pyramid into the storage pouch at his belt.

And then the world blinked.

13

The greenish-blue tint to everything had lifted. The sky above had returned to its purple coloration, and no longer sparked with emerald lightning. The glowing woman was gone, as were all the vines. The jungle foliage that replaced those vines, choking out the ancient spires around the “clearing,” didn’t glow. There was no large grazer bone here either, like there had been in the Khaeota.

He was back in his own universe then. He glanced toward his companions. They were all here. Standing in the same spots where they had been bound, except they were free now. And there was no sign of the Amaranth. The only dweller who had returned with them was G’allanthamas.

Everyone else seemed just as shocked as Tane to be back.

Lyra looked at Tane expectantly. “Well?”

“I know how to save Sinive,” he said. His voice sounded normal, and no longer crackled with energy.

“Chase, with me,” Jed said. “We scout for dwellers around the perimeter.”

The Volur gave Tane a questioning look, as if seeking his permission, and Tane quickly nodded.

He’d never get used to that. A man like Jed looking to him for leadership?

Oh, it was going to be hard to let the Volur down when the time came. But until then, he’d let him and everyone else follow him. Let them all think he was the Bender of Worlds, and not the impostor he was.

Tane went to Sinive and cradled her in his arms.

The foliage stirred beside him and for a moment Tane started. Lyra was at his side in an instant, Essence Ax exploding from her beam hilt.

Tane heard the whirring of metal, and then Positron appeared from the foliage, clambering to his feet despite the large dent in his chest.

Tane gave the robot a questioning look.

“I switched to a backup power cell,” Positron said. “My first was damaged beyond repair.”

The animated visor on Positron’s face registered nonchalance. Sinive had printed up that visor for the robot.

Everything reminds me of her.

It was probably a good thing all of his grief was funneled toward restoring her. If he didn’t have that hope, he didn’t think he would have been able to hold it together.

Positron helped him returned Sinive to the stasis pod—the entire top section remained ripped away, courtesy of S’Wraathar.

“There’s no way we can repair the top,” Positron said. “But hopefully, we won’t have to soon enough.”

“Will it still levitate?” Tane asked.

Positron opened a panel in the pod’s side and applied a telescoping finger to turn a dial. “I’m issuing a reboot.”

A moment later the stasis pod hummed to life and floated a meter off the ground.

Jed and Chase returned.

“The area is clear,” Jed said. “It appears the dwellers didn’t return, and are presumably still trapped in the Khaoeta.”

“We should take their ships,” Gia said. “Trap them here.” She glanced at G’allanthamas. “You can fly them, right?”

“Ah, not exactly,” G’allanthamas said. “And while I do possess some hacking skills, it’s very likely that they kept their AIs active. The point defenses will shoot down anything that approaches.”

“Then use that blurring ability of yours,” Gia said.

“It won’t work at close range,” the dweller said.

“I’m sure we could find a way if we really needed to,” Tane said. “But the fact is, we don’t. We’ll wait for repairs to complete on our own ships, then we’ll destroy the two vessels from orbit if we can. In the meantime, we’ll guard the approaches to the alien ships, in case the dwellers return, though I have a feeling S’Wraathar and the other Amaranth with him won’t be coming back to our universe anytime soon. But all of that is going to wait until we restore Sinive.”

“How can you be sure the dwellers landed their vessels?” Lyra said. “The alien ships could be waiting in orbit.”

“Nebb and I saw them,” Gia said. “They plowed their ships into the trees after we crash landed. It was the fastest way to pursue us.”

“Okay, so, to the matter of reviving Sinive,” Lyra said. “What are we going to do, exactly?”

“I’ll tell you on the way back to the swamp,” Tane said. “Jed, if you’ll do the honors?” He beckoned toward the jungle.

Jed took the lead.

Tane followed, and told his companions everything that had happened. Well, mostly everything. He didn’t reveal the other Emerald work he’d attained besides Revive.

When he finished, Gia was the first to speak.

“Life force feeders,” Gia said. “That sounds downright unpleasant.”

“Oh it will be,” Tane said. “I have memories of participating in an archaeoceti Revive ritual. These beings can’t be hurt by lasers or plasma weapons—striking them with those only makes them stronger. Things like swords and other blunt weapons do work, however, so you’ll probably want to carve yourselves some staffs before we begin.” He glanced at Lyra, Chase and G’allanthamas. “Essence weapons work well. I don’t suppose you have the beam hilt control skill?” That latter question was directed at Chase.

“No,” the Mancer said. “But I could learn.”

“Mmm,” Tane said. “I’m not sure we have the time. I want to save Sinive and get off this world as soon as possible. One faction of dwellers has already come after us. Lyra mentioned they probably had a mole from another faction in their midst, so I wouldn’t be surprised if more dweller ships were already in-system and heading our way. Maybe even TSN.”

“Well, I do know Essence Missile,” Chase said.

“That’ll be good enough,” Tane said.

“What about our shields?” Gia asked.

“Useless against the feeders,” Tane replied. “Though Deflect will work against some of their attacks.”

“Could we perhaps use a distortion tunnel to escape these life force feeders?” Lyra said.

“I don’t think so,” Tane said. “They’ll follow us through as far as I know. We have to stave them off, keep them from touching Sinive. There’s no escaping this fight.” He glanced at G’allanthamas. “This is the cost you were speaking of, isn’t it? You knew I’d have to fight for her.”

“Not precisely in this manner,” G’allanthamas said. “The cost I was referring to was more in regards to the archaeoceti themselves, in terms of convincing them to save her in the first place. And while they went beyond that by granting you the knowledge of how to do so yourself, you almost paid for that with your life simply to get here. And that is a steep enough cost in and of itself.”

“True enough,” Tane said.

Gia and Nebb tore away thick pieces of bamboo-like plants along the way, and carved the tips into sharp points with plasma knives they produced from their storage pouches.

“I don’t suppose we can tie our plasma knives to the spears?” Gia asked him.

“No,” Tane said. “Any plasma-based weapons will only feed them.”

“Figured,” Gia said.

“Do you even know how to use a spear?” Jed asked Gia over the comm.

“Nope,” Gia said. “But I have to defend myself with something.”

The insects had made a reappearance since Tane and the others had returned to their native universe, but thankfully they didn’t bother him, despite the fact his face was fully exposed due to the missing helmet faceplate. Tane suspected it was because the odor his human body produced “smelled” bad to them.

Lyra slowed to walk alongside him at one point during the return journey.

He glanced at her questioningly, and she inclined her head.

“Tane,” she said, addressing him as an equal.

“Lyra,” he returned.

“Why didn’t you kill S’Wraathar?” Lyra asked.

“I don’t know,” Tane replied. “I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“And yet sparing him was what caused the archaeoceti woman to help you, according to what you’ve told us,” Lyra said.

“That’s right,” Tane said. He was quiet a moment. Then: “Is it true? S’Wraathar killed your sister?”

“I shouldn’t have told you that,” Lyra said. “Shouldn’t have applied undue pressure. I almost caused you to make the worst mistake of your life. In a rare moment of weakness, I allowed my emotions to get the better of me. It won’t happen again.”

“But is it true?” Tane pressed.

Lyra’s face saddened, and she looked away. “I don’t know for sure. S’Wraathar wasn’t broadcasting his name when I first encountered him all those years ago, like he does now. It might have been him. Or at least, a dweller very much like him. A Graaz’dhen Amaranth, wielding a fiery pole-ax of the Dark, and leading a fist of dweller warriors. We fought hard, but…” Lyra paused. “My sister, she was the reason I set out to find you. She was close to Theolus, a highly respected mystic among the Volur. She’d attracted his attention soon after enrolling to become a Volur—in his words, ‘her intellect and sheer prowess in the Essence made her like a shining star, rising above all the rest.’ He took her under his wing, mentored her in the ways of the Essence, and the galaxy. As a mystic, he was very in tune with the Essence, more so than any other Volur. He was the reason we were able to pinpoint the inter-dimensional ship the dwellers were using to ravage human bases. With his help, we were able to ambush and destroy that ship. Gwenyth died during the mission.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Tane said.

Lyra nodded behind her faceplate. “Theolus believed you had been born. It’s the reason why my sister became a warmancer. She wanted to find you. Protect you. Destroying the inter-dimensional ship was a stepping stone toward that goal, at least in her eyes. And when she died, I took up her cause. She swore me to the task, and I accepted. I had to. I needed something to distract myself from what happened. A way to... redeem myself, for failing her.”

Tane didn’t know what to say to that. Thank you? Or maybe, it’s my fault? No, besides the fact that simply wasn’t true, there were no words he could give her that would lessen her pain. He decided the best course of action was to keep his mouth shut.

During the remainder of the journey, he discussed potential tactics for the upcoming battle, listening to everyone’s input and ideas. They came up with a simple plan, but based on the descriptions of the creatures Tane confided from memory, and the difficulty the several archaeoceti had in repelling the feeders, they all concluded it wasn’t going to be easy. Not at all.

Eventually they reached the swamp with the large grazer skeleton strewn across it.

Ideally Tane would have preferred to fight outside the marsh, but there was no way they’d be able to move that dual ribcage of upward and downward facing bones. It was simply too big and heavy. They could wait until the ships were repaired, perhaps, but Tane wanted to get this done as soon as possible.

So, after Jed and Chase made a complete exploratory pass of the swamp, wading back and forth multiple times to confirm no creatures secretly resided within the depths, Tane and the others joined them in the marsh and with G’allanthamas’ help they moved the remaining pieces together, centering them around the twin ribcages, placing the bones so that they were all touching. It was tricky, considering how heavy some of the bigger pieces were, such as the hips and skull, which required a group effort to move, but eventually they had most of the desired bones in contact with one another.

“That will have to do,” Tane said. “Positron?”

Keeping watch at the edge of the swamp, Positron waded into the marsh now, dragging the stasis pod along behind him. The device’s levitation ensured it didn’t touch the murky surface.

Positron easily squeezed between the curved bones of the bottommost portion of the ribcage, and deposited the stasis device in the center. The intention was for the ribs to act as a defensive bulwark of sorts against the life force feeders.

“Everyone, into place,” Tane instructed.

The party members assumed guard positions between the different ribs, watching all the approaches. G’allanthamas stood at the rear section, where one of the bones was missing, to cover the biggest gap between the lower ribcage and the hips.

Tane drew his beam hilt, holding it in his right hand.

Then he rested a hand on the large, downward curving rib bone beside him.

It was time to bring Sinive back.

14

Tane took a deep breath and tried to part the veil to the veritable storm of Synthate he knew was waiting within.

He got nothing.

He couldn’t even sense the merest hint of the pleasure that awaited inside. Nor the pain.

“This isn’t working,” Tane said. He looped his beam hilt back into his belt, removed both gloves, and hastily shoved the spacesuit pieces inside his storage belt. Then he retrieved the beam hilt once again and touched the rib with his bare left hand.

That was better. Not only could he feel the rough texture of the alien skeleton, he could sense the pain, and the pleasure that awaited beyond. He attempted to part the veil of those barbed beads, but once more couldn’t penetrate. He realized the grazer that once had those bones inside of its living body was fighting him.

He shoved with all his being.

The veil abruptly yielded and his hand slid inside. Something bit him. Hard.

“Ouch!”

He pulled his hand back to examine his bare fingers. There was no sign of any physical trauma. And he felt no lingering pain.

“What is it?” Jed asked.

“Nothing,” Tane said.

The osseous surface remained intact in front of him, so he replaced his hand. Before he could even attempt to part the veil, however, a giant, disembodied reptilian head lurched at him from the side with its mouth open. He gasped and instinctively ducked, releasing the bone.

The maw and its flat teeth passed right through him, vanishing.

“Tane,” Lyra said. She made to leave her position.

“I’m all right,” he said, raising a halting hand. She kept her place underneath the ribcage.

He glanced around himself, searching for the disembodied head, but it was completely gone.

An illusion.

From his memories, he knew the archaeoceti were masters of them. And so were the grazers, apparently.

But the former point made him wonder: had he really met S’Wraathar?

No. I met him. Gia and Nebb wouldn’t have been shot down by actual alien ships, otherwise.

Unless the archaeoceti had done it.

Except they didn’t exist in this universe.

He calmed his mind, dismissing his aberrant thoughts. He realized he was merely trying to avoid what was coming. He came here to save Sinive.

It was time to do it.

Tane forced himself to touch the bone again. He waited for some other illusion to strike, but none came. He pressed down hard with his will, delving into the veil. He imagined himself seated atop the huge grazer, with a bridle fashioned of fire and ice clasped around its neck, and a bit of Dark and White Essence rammed into its mouth. He pulled hard on that bit, making that head rear, and he jabbed ankles equipped with fiery spurs into its flanks. The grazer howled, but refused to budge. It bucked him off.

Tane fell backwards, splashing into the marsh.

“Tane!” Lyra said.

Tane scrambled to his feet. “I’m fine!” He spat out some of the disgusting swamp water that had flowed into his open faceplate. It tasted like a mixture of mold and vomit. He spat a few more times trying to get the taste out of his mouth.

He took a deep breath, stood to his full height, and placed his hand onto the uneven gray surface again.

Come on, I’ve done this before.

Though in his memories, he had only ever broken in a new grazer skeleton once. It had taken him a week of trying.

I don’t have a week.

He took a deep breath and pressed against the veil with his psyche. This time, in his mind’s eye, he found himself underneath the grazer. It was running in full flight across a plain, and dragging Tane along underneath, pounding him with those giant hooves every step. He wasn’t harmed physically, of course, but his spirit was being beaten right out of him.

Must... turn... the tables!

Somehow he swung himself up and onto the grazer’s flanks, and then crawled onto its neck. Once more the bit and bridle of fire and ice appeared, and Tane pulled hard on the reins, drawing up the creature. Then he decided to try a different approach, easing off on the pressure. He banished the reins entirely, so that he was alone on the back of the grazer. Before it could buck him off, he visualized himself on the ground in front of it. The surprised creature took a step back. Tane materialized a huge tree in his grasp, its leaves coated in sugar, and he offered it to the grazer. The huge animal sniffed the tree suspiciously and then began to munch.

Tane planted the sugar tree in the ground, and walked to the grazer’s right front leg. He wrapped his arms around it, and when the animal didn’t respond, Tane began to climb. He found footholds in the folds of its flesh; it was like climbing a thick tree trunk covered in wrinkles.

He pulled himself onto the top flank, and once more settled behind the head. He wasn’t fooling himself that he had actually broken the animal, but hopefully he had at least earned some respect, or trust. It seemed to tolerate him there, in any case. Or perhaps it worried that if it bucked him off, he would banish the sugar-coated tree.

While this scene filled his vision, he was aware that he was still standing in the swamp with his bare hand touching the long dead grazer’s rib bone. He could still feel the rough osseous underneath his palm, and decided to attempt the parting of the veil once more.

This time he got through. The Synthate sparked into his nervous system, and he felt a sheer agony that was entirely unlike any of his previous partings. It was like a billion pinpricks stabbing into his ganglia all at the same time, body-wide. He had memories of Siphoning through larger skeletons, but he couldn’t remember it ever being this bad. He suspected the archaeoceti had toned down the experience. Or perhaps they hadn’t been able to simulate pain with the proper intensities in memory, despite all the human guinea pigs they had gone through. Or maybe the grazer was causing it. Whatever the case, he certainly felt that pain now.

It faded as quickly as it had come, replaced by an intense pleasure that was also new to him, stronger than anything he had ever experienced, even in memory. It was so intoxicating in fact that he simply wanted to give up on reality and reside in that state forever. Forget Sinive, forget the rest of the universe, all that mattered to him was this all-encompassing bliss.

But the bolts of green lightning that sparked all around him reminded him of his peril. They were ominous, those bolts, and he forced himself to concentrate upon them.

It’s fake. All of this is fake. The pleasure is an illusion. The archaeoceti are masters of illusion.

Yes, the pleasure was fake, and if he succumbed to it he would die. The Emerald Essence was killing him at this very moment, as all Essence did when Siphoned.

He began to join the ends of the lightning, and each interconnected piece shrunk down to take its place at the center of his vision. Time slowed down, or his mind sped up, and he completed thousand upon thousands of connections in the span of a second. Finally he had a small, sparking structure before him. A structure that looked like a living brain made of pure energy.

He floated the work over the stasis pod and lowered it onto Sinive’s head, then let it set in this reality.

When it vanished inside of her skull, he turned toward his companions and said: “It’s done.”

“What now?” Nebb asked.

“Now they come...” Tane replied.

Sinive didn’t exhibit any signs of life. She wouldn’t for at least the next several minutes anyway, which was the most crucial period of time in the process. The feeders would be here well before then.

He remained in contact with the rib bone and continued to Siphon the Emerald. Though he felt great, with waves of pleasure flowing up and down his body, he had no doubt he had already exhausted himself. But if he released the Synthate now he’d collapse. He’d be useless to his friends. No, he couldn’t let go. If Lyra knew how much he was risking his life by hanging onto the Emerald like this, she would have stopped him. But he had withheld that tiny tidbit of information from her. He couldn’t let go now, not when they needed him most.

Not when Sinive needed him.

It didn’t take long before the first of the creatures came. A small glowing object floated over the swamp about half a meter above the water. It was a red, translucent sphere, like a will-o’-the-wisp.

Tane activated his Essence ax, and the gale of White scraped across his bones while the Emerald sparked through his neurons. He also touched the Dark, hoping to mitigate the draining effects of the Emerald and the White, though with all those dark flames appearing around him that he had to quench, he worried the act would only worsen his exhaustion. But he held on nonetheless, and fed the Dark into his Finger of Malevolence ring.

Around them, the swamp grew dim, though the sky remained clear overhead. It was as if something had blotted out the sun, and in moments the equivalent of night had descended upon the marsh. There were no stars overhead. The only light came from that approaching, phosphorescent object: a dim, weak affair. The translucent lightning that surrounded Tane thanks to his Siphoning of the Emerald didn’t provide any illumination, seeing as how the bolts were visible to his eyes alone.

Lyra or Chase must have created works of Star Light, because multiple globes of light appeared above the swamp a moment later to properly illuminate the area.

The phosphorescent object moved casually, slowly approaching the ribcage. It elongated as Tane watched, becoming slithering, snakelike. A maw appeared, widening, and horns grew from it. Legs appeared.

It continued growing as it approached, and sank, as if becoming too heavy to maintain its position above the murky water. It dropped into the marsh, vanishing.

The liquid boiled above the spot, with bubbles and steam issuing forth.

And then a horned head appeared, followed by a powerful neck and shoulders, thick chest, huge arms, and finally two thick, corded legs. It towered over the party members, easily as tall as the dual ribcages. Its eyes glowed red.

Behind it, on either side, two more similarly sized creatures emerged from the swamp.

“Uh,” Gia said.

The lead creature roared, drowning her out.

Jed dashed forward, disappearing. He reappeared a moment later, swinging his Chrysalium sword toward the base of the creature. He cut a gash just below the knee, and black and red light shone forth from the wound.

The creature batted the Volur away in anger.

Lyra launched an Essence Missile, and carved a gaping hole into the lead life feeder. Like the previous wound, it emitted black and red light.

Chase released a Missile as well, far smaller than Lyra’s, but it was enough to enlarge the original wound. G’allanthamas unleashed Fingers of Ruin, concentrating on the head. Tane also launched one of the Fingers of Ruin works he had prepared in reserve and targeted the same area.

Cracks appeared in that muscular face, and red and black light issued forth. Then the head exploded, and the creature toppled, vanishing into the marsh.

Tane felt a glow of pleasure at the victory, no doubt amplified by the Synthate sparking through his nerves. The emerald lighting bolts around him seemed to dance in approval.

The remaining two life feeders glowed with a sudden halo of red and black light.

The urgency Tane felt in that moment cut right through the pleasure.

“They’re using their Essence!” Tane said.

Purple and black swirls of unreality warped into existence in front of the creatures. From those swirls came a swarm of tiny black insects. Tane wasn’t sure if the insects were born of the purple and black swirls, or already existed in the swamp and were simply attracted and controlled by the strange Essencework. Either way, the horde swerved toward the ribcage and the prize it contained.

The insects abruptly flowed away from the base of the ribcage, only half a meter away, scattering in a circular direction in the same plane as if contacting an invisible shield. No doubt Chase and Lyra had placed works of Deflect.

The insects crawled around the ribcage, searching for a point of entry, but Chase and Lyra had managed to envelop the entire ribcage in their defensive work.

Jed winked into view, his sword plunging into the nape of one of the giant feeders in the swamp beyond. That one collapsed, dying, and the Volur vanished once more.

G’allanthamas released another work of Fingers of Ruin at the remaining creature, striking the head region. Tane also used his last Dark Reserve, and dispatched black smears to join that of the dweller’s, and the multiple smears hit the horned head. Lyra launched an Essence Missile at the same time, striking the creature in the chest. The combined damage toppled the final giant, and it fell forward dead, sinking into the swamp.

The insects that swarmed around the ribcage dissipated.

Nearby, Chase slumped slightly, and leaned heavily against the ribcage beside him. Maintaining a Deflect field that big couldn’t have been gentle on the stamina.

Tane glanced at Sinive. She exhibited no signs of life. And the remote interface of the stasis pod confirmed that she was just as dead as she was a few moments ago.

Jed appeared, wading toward the ribcage.

“That was only the first wave, I assume?” Jed said as he took his assigned place between two large ribs.

“Unfortunately,” Tane said.

15

By that point, Tane had been hanging on to the Emerald Essence for too long. He was beginning to like the feeling of pleasure that permeated his being. He didn’t want to give it up. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to let go when the time came.

Maybe I should let go now?

No. Then he’d be useless.

A little longer.

He didn’t have long to wait for the next attack.

Maybe ten seconds later, on the far side of the swamp, the water began to bubble all along the shore line.

“Something’s coming,” Nebb announced.

“We can see that,” Gia said.

Multiple lumps appeared in the swamp near shore. These lumps expanded upward and outward, growing like branchless trees. As heads began to form at the tops, he realized those tall structures were necks. Multiple heads formed upon each one, three per neck, with a pair of pincers, insectile eyes, and antennae upon each. The necks were connected to a thorax that arose from the water on six segmented legs. A large abdomen pulsed at the rear, covered in plate-like scales.

“What the hell is that?” Gia said.

“Some kind of insect,” Nebb said.

“What insect do you know of that has three heads per stalk?” Gia said. “Let alone grows to the size of a small house?”

“Not a friendly one.” Lyra released an Essence Missile. As did Chase.

The Missiles struck an invisible shield.

“It seems we’re not the only ones who have Deflect,” Chase said.

The multi-headed insect’s abdomen pulsed, and four squirming white larva dropped into the water. The large insect otherwise didn’t move.

Tane and the others focused their attention on the swamp before them, searching for the larvae that were no doubt approaching at that very moment.

“Jed, anything on the LIDAR?” Tane asked.

“Negative,” Jed said. “But that doesn’t mean—”

The Volur was abruptly pulled into the water, vanishing entirely.

“Jed!” Tane said.

A moment later Lyra joined Jed as she too was sucked under, leaving only ripples on the surface.

“Lyra!” Tane said.

Their blue dots still showed up on the overhead map, indicating they were still alive.

“Help them!” Tane ordered. He couldn’t let go of the rib bone to aid Lyra or Jed, not unless he wanted to lose the Emerald Essence and allow exhaustion to overtake him, thus taking himself out of the fight.

G’allanthamas raced from underneath the ribcage toward Lyra’s position as marked upon the map, while Chase and Gia hurried toward Jed.

Bubbles appeared on the surface of the murky water above Lyra’s location.

Tane heard a pained grunt over the comm. His HUD indicated Lyra had made the sound.

Before Chase and Gia reached Jed, the Volur emerged from the water. He had two big white larva attached to him—one at his waist, the other around his right arm assembly. His sword and power armor glowed a bright blue as he beat the creatures away.

Chase unleashed a small Essence Missile, striking the larva attached to Jed’s arm.

G’allanthamas reached Lyra’s position and delved his legs underneath the water. In moments he had pulled the Volur to the surface. She had two larvae attached as well—one clung to her leg, the other had wrapped both arms to her sides, forcing her to deactivate her beam hilt. Now that she could properly see, she unleashed an Essence Missile, breaking through the large white worm that clung to her waist.

“Damn thing squeezed all the air out of my lungs,” Lyra commented.

Tane didn’t see what happened next to the Volurs, because the multi-headed insect attacked.

All of its necks darted forward at the same time, the heads lurching toward the ribcage and their prize inside. One of those heads came directly at him.

Tane, keeping his hand touching the rib bone, sidestepped and chopped down with his Essence ax. He scored a hit, and red and black light issued from the wound.

Jed chopped at another head with his Chrysalium sword, while Chase unleashed an Essence missile at a third. Nebb and Gia ducked behind the thick rib bones for cover as other heads lurched toward them.

Dark lines of unreality emerged from Tane’s body of their own accord, thanks to the Finger of Malevolence ring, and streaked toward another head. Cracks erupted in the surface after the impact, and the creature howled.

Other heads slammed into the gaps between ribcages, attempting to penetrate—anyone still in position dodged out of the way. The insect’s heads proved too big to fit between the spaces in the ribcage, and instead struck the neighboring bones. The entire structure shook, and Tane nearly lost his hold on it.

The attack continued like that, with the giant multi-headed insect repeatedly pummeling the ribcage, while Tane and the others struggled to keep the beast at bay and stay alive in the process. At one point, Jed appeared on one of the necks, and cut down hard with his sword, but he only sliced part way through; the head from another neck bit down on him and threw him away into the jungle. Lyra continued to release Essence Missiles now and then, wearing away at the creature’s flesh, as did Chase. Nebb and Gia struck out with their spears whenever they had a chance.

Tane kept his hand firmly planted on the ribcage throughout it all. It strained him to continually Siphon those multiple Essences through his body, but at least he didn’t have to shape them. He simply held on, not daring to let go. The pleasure he felt from the Emerald kept all exhaustion at bay, but he reminded himself that the feeling was an illusion. A lethal one. He wondered if he would keel over dead when this was done.

If that’s the price I must pay to save Sinive, then so be it.

He spared a moment to glance at her, as he had been doing at intervals during the fight. But this time when he looked at Sinive, he spotted small red globes of light around her stasis pod. White energy streamed from her body into those globes.

He realized then that the whole assault had been a distraction: these smaller targets were the main threat. They were sucking out Sinive’s life force as it tried to reenter her body. That wasn’t in the memories...

“Sinive!” Tane said.

He sensed movement at the periphery of his vision as others in his party looked back, but they could only spare a moment of attention, because the big insect continued its main assault. Lyra was swinging her Essence ax left and right, while Chase was raising works of Deflect as the creature unleashed concentrated bursts of stinging insects at them.

In truth, Tane was the least involved in the battle. He had stayed between the ribcage while some of the others had moved out into the swamp to meet the attacking heads, and because of his position, he was closest to Sinive, and thus the obvious choice to stave off the red globes.

The question was, how?

He didn’t want to risk firing an Essence Missile at Sinive, not that close, nor an Essence Bolt from the ax.

Tane had purposely left a disconnected rib bone in the swamp underneath the ribcage, lying horizontally so that it protruded slightly from the murky water, giving him a path he could follow to the stasis pod.

Tane released the Dark and stepped out of the White to hang the inactive beam hilt at his belt; he felt no drop in stamina, thanks to the continual bliss the Emerald suffused him with.

He placed his free hand onto the horizontally lying rib bone. He let go of the vertical rib so that he was Siphoning Emerald through the horizontal osseous alone—it wasn’t connected to the main skeleton so he felt the drop in Synthate immediately, which registered as a reduction in pleasure across his body.

Ignoring the change, he slid his hands across the surface of the horizontal bone as he waded toward Sinive, not daring to let go of the Emerald.

As he made his way toward her, he wondered vaguely why the surreptitious attack from those red globes didn’t match his memory of the ritual. The life feeders had obviously changed tactics since the mind imprint had been made.

When he reached Sinive, keeping one hand on the partially submerged rib bone, he retrieved his beam hilt and reactivated the Essence ax; he used the White blade to attack the energy leeches. They scattered easily as he swept his blade through them. Those that he actually touched with the Essence ax dissipated.

The remaining red globes promptly returned, resuming their leeching—as evident by the white ribbons of energy streaming from Sinive’s body. Tane swiped at them again with his weapon and once more they scattered, only to return. Thus Tane had to keep doing that, continually swatting them aside while staying slightly crouched so that his other hand remained in contact with the bone at all times.

Gia came to his side, helping him bat away the creatures with her spear. He was thankful of that, because there seemed too many for him to handle alone.

The ribcage above him shook violently and, glancing to his right, Tane saw that the heads were rapidly pummeling the defenders now. Lyra and Chase were barely holding a Deflect field against the latest insect swarm salvo, while G’allanthamas and Jed were crawling across the giant necks and inflicting what damage they could, Jed with his Chrysalium sword, G’allanthamas with a blunt weapon the dweller had fashioned out of a small tree. Nebb remained in cover behind one of the ribcages, warding off the heads with his pointed wooden staff whenever any came his way.

A brightness drew Tane’s attention to the far left, near the shoreline. There, amid the dark that surrounded the swamp, a rip in spacetime formed. He thought it was a distortion tunnel at first, but if it was, it was unlike any he had ever seen. Ordinarily, distortion tunnels offered a glimpse of the area they led to: this one swirled with iridescent colors. Then he realized that maybe the tunnel was indeed showing the destination: it merely wasn’t of this universe.

He had been expecting dwellers, so he was surprised when a large... entity emerged. It was about twice as tall as a human, or about half as big as the giant multi-headed insect that assailed them. The head, torso, and two arms were made of gray rock with white and blue veins crisscrossing the surface, veins that glowed. But the rest of the being was metal, as if it wore a battle suit, or was some kind of macabre mix of creature and machine, because below the rock portion, the main body was like an armored tank. Small turrets emerged from either side like a gunship, promising destruction. At the bottom of the tank, where four wheels would have resided were this a human vehicle, instead were two pairs of treads.

He tried to ID it, but got nothing of course.

Lyra immediately focused on the newcomer, launching an Essence Missile at its turrets. But her missiles were weak at the moment—she was obviously close to exhaustion.

The rock-metal being raised its own version of Deflect, and Lyra’s missiles were batted away. But before the newcomer could unleash whatever was contained within those turrets at the Volur, the giant insect steered two of its necks toward the entity, drawing its attention.

The rock-metal entity fired streaks of molten slag at the giant insect from those turrets, and where they struck, the impact areas either transformed to stone or became coated in it. In moments one of the insect’s giant heads was completely covered in stone and it dropped like a dead weight into the swamp, drawing the other heads and the neck they were joined to down with it. The resultant impact caused an impressive splash, and sent a powerful wave traveling across the swamp.

The giant insect launched two more of its heads at the newcomer, apparently gauging it a threat similar to if not bigger than Tane and his companions. At that point, Tane had to wonder if the rock-metal entity was friend or foe.

He suspected the latter.

During all of this, with Gia’s help, Tane continued to defend against the red globes that were leeching Sinive’s life force.

Without warning the swamp beside him erupted and a molten creature burst forth from the surface; it quickly solidified into a humanoid made of rock, with glowing red eyes. Tane brought his Essence ax around and sliced through it, breaking the rock creature apart.

Tane cast his gaze about, searching the edges of the swamp for S’Wraathar, thinking at first that the Graaz’dhen Amaranth had created it. But S’Wraathar was nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile, the rock-metal entity continued to stave off the giant multi-headed insect, drawing most of its attention.

More molten creatures emerged from the swamp around the ribcage, and they solidified, approaching Tane and the others from all sides. Their red eyes gleamed with hunger.

16

Tane realized the rock-metal entity was responsible for the appearance of these new creatures, and was very likely the same being that had given S’Wraathar the power to summon similar beings. In fact, S’Wraathar had probably led that rock-metal entity here.

And when the creatures began to attack his friends, Tane knew without a doubt that the new alien was indeed a foe.

The giant insect divided its concentration between the entity and Tane’s companions now, so that they had to defend against an attack on two fronts. Fortunately, the multi-headed insect also assaulted the smaller rock creatures whenever they got in the way; Nebb took advantage of that behavior by firing his sawed-off plasma rifle at point blank range at the rock beings, forcing them to back away—usually right into the maws of a waiting insectile head.

Sinive still showed no signs of life. Tane had only succeeded in eliminating half of the red globes; the rest had learned to anticipate both his blows and Gia’s, and usually swerved away just in time when he struck, only to return a moment later.

He felt a sudden pressure on his right thigh and when he saw the head of a white worm jut up from the swamp below his hip, only to latch its suckers onto his spacesuit there, he realized the big insect had launched more larvae into the murky waters, and one had just wrapped around his leg.

The larva yanked hard at his thigh, and Tane nearly lost his footing. If another one had grabbed him at the same time, he had no doubt that he would’ve been sucked into the swamp entirely, as had happened to Lyra and Jed earlier.

He ignored the creature, and tried to concentrate on swatting away the red globes from Sinive, but he couldn’t help the growing feeling of despair inside him: it cut through the Emerald pleasure suffusing his body like a poisoned blade.

They were going to lose this. In his heart of hearts, he knew they were. He should have waited until he was a higher level before attempting to Revive Sinive.

When he failed, Sinive would remain dead, and he’d never have another chance to Revive her again.

No.

He refused to give up so easily. Refused.

He had come all this way, fought tooth and nail; she deserved to live damn it. More than anything.

He needed something that could stop the big insect and the rock creatures. Essence Missiles would help, but without a large Chrysalium source nearby, they wouldn’t cause enough damage. That was obvious now. Especially considering how exhausted he and the other Essenceworkers had become. The Missiles of Lyra and Chase had become dim sticks of light, versus the blinding javelins they had launched at the start of the fight.

Maybe I should have waited until the ships were repaired after all, at the very least to land them closer for easy access to their hulls.

But he refused to second guess himself. He had been right to perform Revive when he did. That was all he could tell himself. All he could believe.

Perhaps there was another work that would save them. Something from the Emerald Essence. He was in contact with essentially the equivalent of a Chrysalium source after all, in that grazer rib bone. He didn’t need the full skeleton to create what he needed. The current rib bone beneath him would more than suffice.

And though he had already created one work of that Essence—an incredibly complex, and no doubt tiring work—he felt fine. Surely he could invoke another work of the Emerald?

His training shouted at him that no, he was done, and that the small, addictive pleasure he felt was an illusion. His body was ready to give out on him.

But he ignored the muted cries inside him. He had no choice.

Forgive me, Sinive.

He began joining the tips of the green electrical bolts that only he saw around himself. He expected the grazer to fight him, but it did not, perhaps because he had already parted the veil several minutes ago. Or perhaps because it wanted him to create this next work.

Time slowed, and in moments he had created a small, glowing structure reminiscent of a brain with four interconnected quadrants, or quadraspheres. He set it into this reality just above the swamp, midway between the multi-headed insect and the rock-metal alien.

In seconds a large shimmering being appeared, comparable in size to the giant insect. With four thick, tree-trunk legs, a long neck and tail, and a torso that looked like two huge stacked barrels tied together, Tane was reminded of the gargantuans he had seen wandering the plains in Tiberius’ memory of his visit to the archaeoceti. It had four eyes with horns forming a curved crown above them, with a bony plate fanning outward from the base of the skull. Its slightly translucent skin was made of shimmering silver and gold scales flecked with diamond dust.

It was the grazer to whom this particular bone belonged, a being that existed now only as pure energy.

The grazer snarled in outrage, apparently enraged by the fact it had been dragged from the peace and quiet of its universe and into this chaotic one.

It promptly breathed green electricity at the multi-headed insect, sending up plumes of smoke from the creature’s thorax where the bolts struck. The insect howled in pain as huge black marks formed across its skin.

A molten missile from the rock-metal entity struck the grazer, diverting its attention to the smaller alien. The grazer promptly leaped at the rock-metal entity and wrestled it to the ground.

Jed and G’allanthamas continued bashing away at the badly injured giant insect, which had stopped assaulting the ribcage entirely. The pair darted between the different necks and heads, blunt force instruments flashing.

Tane and Gia continued to concentrate on diverting the small red globes that were assailing the stasis pod. Nebb joined them—all the smaller rock creatures had been defeated by then, courtesy of Chase and Lyra, who were able to concentrate on the beings with the distraction the grazer provided. With their help, Tane managed to keep the red globes from further draining Sinive.

Minutes passed, but it seemed like only moments, because just like that the battle was over. The multi-headed insect, grievously injured, collapsed dead under a few final blows from Jed and G’allanthamas, who together hacked off the last head.

With the giant insect gone, the small red spheres, which hadn’t seeped any life from Sinive for quite some time now, faded from around the stasis pod, vanishing entirely. The white worm that had attached itself to Tane’s leg let go, and sank into the swamp.

The rock-metal entity meanwhile created that swirling distortion tunnel of iridescent colors behind itself and fled under the continual assaults of the grazer. Before the grazer could follow the alien through, the tunnel closed.

With the last of the enemies dispatched, the grazer turned toward the ribcage where Tane and the others sheltered.

Then it unleashed a spray of green electricity at Tane. Nebb and Lyra dodged behind nearby rib bones, but Tane had no time to move. He covered his face with one arm, fully expecting to die.

But the electricity never hit him. Outside the ribcage, Lyra had created a cone of Deflect; it was weak, but it managed to do the job. Only a few bolts got through, and those served only to blacken his spacesuit in spots.

The grazer roared in anger, and then trampled forward, sending up plumes of swamp water with each footfall. Lyra moved out of the way and the grazer rammed its head against the ribcage. It was too big to squeeze through the gaps, but the entire structure tilted upward on that side before crashing down again. Tane thought the grazer had been trying to overturn the ribcage so it could get at him.

He reminded himself that he had already broken the beast when he had parted the veil. At least, partially so.

“Easy, boy!” Tane said. “Easy. It’s me. Remember the sugar coated tree?”

The grazer exhaled twice loudly, its rage unappeased, and slammed its head into the ribcage even harder. Once more it tilted upward, forming a gap almost wide enough for the grazer to fit through before crashing down again.

Tane raised a hand. “It’s me.” He forced his will onto the rib bone beneath him, through the jagged edges of the veil, just as he did when commanding the dark artifacts.

It worked. The grazer stopped bashing its translucent head against the ribcage, and simply stood there, huge flanks rising and falling with each inhale and exhale.

And then it disappeared.

The five minute summoning window had passed.

The darkness that enveloped the swamp lifted, and daylight returned.

He turned his attention toward the woman he had given everything to save.

* * *

Sinive existed in darkness. She didn’t float, didn’t sit, didn’t stand... merely existed.

A thoughtless eternity passed.

A spark appeared in the infinite blackness around her. She didn’t see, hear, or feel it. It was just there. She finally felt something, for the first time in eons. A familiar presence. She knew this spark, and it cared for her. It grew bigger with each moment until it finally consumed her.

The darkness was replaced by a rainforest. She was kneeling next to a stream. Above her, the trees were in the full blossom of spring. So many colors—but mostly violet, blue and white. The scent of lilacs tickled her nostrils, and songbirds chirped ebulliently nearby.

The wind picked up momentarily, and several tiny petals among the blossoms above her rained down like confetti.

She washed her face with the cold water. It was so good to feel the coolness of that water on her cheeks, to feel anything again. The rays of the sun on her face, warming her skin anew. The hope for the future that beat in her breast.

She held her hand in the water, and felt the growing numbness as the frigid liquid sapped away the heat from her fingers. She was thrilled to even have hands and fingers again.

She stared idly off into space, filled with peace. She wasn’t sure how long she stayed in that pose. A few seconds. A hundred years.

And then she sensed movement at the periphery of her vision. She turned her head and saw Tane standing there. He had a smile on his face. He was holding out his hand to her.

“You came for me,” Sinive said, grinning back at him. She stood up. “I knew you would.”

She went to him and wrapped her hand around his own. His fingers felt so very warm compared to hers. She wasn’t sure if it was because she had drenched her palm in the river for so long, or if her flesh was inherently cold. Though she wasn’t sure why the latter would be the case.

He squeezed her hand and then darkness enveloped her once more. She felt an incredible sense of loss. Like she had been reborn, and now was gone back to oblivion.

But then she opened her eyes a moment later. She was lying on some sort of stretcher. No, she was in a pod of some kind, judging from the curved, close walls on either flank. That pod had seen better days—the top edges were jagged as if the entire upper half had been torn off.

She felt stiff all over and her muscles ached. She suddenly regretted that she could feel again. Oblivion was almost preferable to this.

But I’m alive.

And that was something.

Tane was looking down at her. He smiled weakly. He was wearing a helmet with the faceplate open.

She was filled with overwhelming joy upon seeing him. Just an incredible, all-encompassing joy. She wanted to leap up and hug him, or kiss him, and she almost did, but something stopped her.

Yes, something was wrong. His features were very pale, almost waxen, and his eyes were sunken. The blood had drained from his lips. His smile was obviously strained, and she thought she saw pain in his eyes. Those eyes... had they ever been so haunted? What happened to Tane while she was gone?

Speaking of gone… where had she been?

What the hell had happened?

Tane abruptly dropped from view, vanishing behind the curved walls of the pod as if he had collapsed.

“No!” Sinive said.

She scrambled upright. Past the edges of the pod, she saw others coming toward her—she recognized Lyra and Jed, Gia and Nebb, but she had eyes only for Tane.

She slid her legs over the jagged edge of the stasis pod—the metal cut into her calves, as she was wearing only her white dress, but she didn’t care. She leaped down into the swamp, and was vaguely aware of the sting as the murky water bit into her fresh wounds.

Tane was floating in the marsh on his back, buoyed by his spacesuit. Beyond his open faceplate, blood poured from all of his orifices—eyes, nose, mouth, and ears.

Those bleeding, hollow eyes of his were barely open.

“I’m sorry,” Tane said, closing his eyelids.

“Don’t you leave me!” Sinive said, wrapping her arms underneath his spacesuit and hauling his heavy torso up out of the swamp. “Not now!”

But Tane had already gone.

17

Tane opened his eyes.

He was in a sickbay, it looked like, given the surgical white colors all around him, and the neatly placed medical instruments next to his bedside. Not to mention the surgical robot that had him under observation. Then there was the smell: the cloying odor of antiseptic that filled the air. He could hear a heart rate monitor beeping away beside him.

According to his HUD, his chip was connected to the Musenet. That meant he was aboard the Mosaic.

He glanced at the time in the lower right of his vision. If what he saw was correct, two full days had passed since he’d passed out in the swamp.

He wanted to sit up, but felt lazy, so he tapped into the remote interface of the bed. He had access to the motor controls, and activated the midsection, lifting the upper portion of the bed underneath him so he was propped up.

When he had risen a comfortable amount, he deactivated the motor controls. He sensed motion to his left and turned his head to look that way.

Sinive was sitting in the chair next to his bed and looking right at him.

“An angel,” Tane breathed.

A smile flickered across her lips. “It’s good to see you, too. You’re sweet as ever.” She stood and leaned over him to plant a kiss on his temples. Her lips were warm, welcoming.

“Just the temples?” Tane said.

“Have to give you something to look forward to,” Sinive said mischievously. “A reason to get out of here.”

“Oh, I’ve missed you,” Tane said.

“And I you,” Sinive said. “We thought you were going to die.”

“Was it that bad?” Tane said.

“Uh, yeah,” Sinive said.

Tane stared into her eyes with longing. “As much as I hate to say it, maybe dying would have been for the best. Even if it meant not seeing you ever again.”

Her face darkened.

“Don’t talk like that,” Sinive said. “Why would you even say such a thing?”

“You don’t know what happened after I lost you...” Tane shook his head. “Look up the word ‘monster’ in your internal dictionary. You’ll find my name next to the entry.”

“You’re not a monster, silly,” Sinive said.

“Review the footage from Xalantas on the Galnet, once we get our connection back,” Tane said. “Then tell me to my face I’m not a monster.”

She leaned close to peer directly into his eyes. “You’re not a monster.”

She sat in the chair once more, and sighed. She stared at her crossed palms in her lap.

“Lyra told me everything,” Sinive said. “I died. Died. As in, the never coming back sort of thing. But you brought me back, somehow. Despite all odds. You brought me back.” She lowered her voice. “I have no memory of dying. None at all. Probably a good thing.” She was quiet a moment. “And yes, I already viewed the archives the residents of Xalantas live-streamed during the attack. Gia had Muse cache some of it from the Galnet before leaving the last system, and she showed me. I was shocked at first, I admit. No one is supposed to be that powerful. But there you were, at the center of the carnage, dealing death like you were born to it. I didn’t recognize you, to be honest. Your face was twisted into an expression of… I don’t know, I guess the best description is: pure hatred.”

Tane sighed. “Like I said, monster.”

“No,” Sinive said. “You shouldn’t feel guilty. All of those people deserved to die. They were trying to enslave you and the rest of us. They nearly succeeded. I don’t feel a shred of pity for them.”

“They were just following orders,” Tane said. “You served in the TSN, you know what it’s like. I’m sure none of those men and women truly wanted to be there. And what about the civilians? In the archives, didn’t you see me destroying the buildings around the terminal? I’m sure there were innocent men and women hiding inside each.” He shook his head. “It’s just not safe for me to be among the ordinary population. Now that I have you back, we need to get as far away from civilization as we can.”

“What if I don’t want to leave civilization?” Sinive asked.

Tane regarded her uncertainly. “Then I guess I’ll go alone. Or with whoever else wants to join me. I haven’t told the others my plans yet. I’ve hinted at it, but never laid out anything solid. But I suppose now’s the time.”

“Oh, they’ll know now,” Sinive said. She glanced toward the ceiling. “The walls have ears.”

“Greetings,” Muse said on cue.

“Ah,” Tane said.

“I’ve already informed Gia that you are awake,” the Mosaic’s AI said. “Lyra and Jed will arrive shortly.”

“But I want some time alone with my—”

The sickbay hatch opened: Lyra and Jed stood in the outer passageway. Lyra had reduced her armored dress to a thin body-clinging fabric, while Jed’s body armor was similarly diminished—all the better to traverse the cramped ship.

“I suppose I’ll leave you for a while,” Sinive said. “I’m sure you have a lot to talk about with our Volur friends.”

“But we have a lot to talk about ourselves,” Tane pleaded.

She reached out, grabbed his hand. “We’ll talk later.” She squeezed slightly.

“I look forward to it,” Tane said, pressing back harder.

She smiled sadly, then stepped past the two Volurs and into the passageway. The hatch closed behind her, leaving Jed and Lyra inside.

Tane stared at Lyra. The woman’s expression was unreadable. As was Jed’s. “So?”

“I don’t even know where to begin,” Lyra said. “If you were anyone else, I’d slap you in the face and call you a selfish son of a bitch.”

Tane frowned. “I don’t know how I can be selfish, considering what I did for Sinive out there…”

“Yes, what you did…” Lyra said. “Almost killed yourself. For what? One person.”

“I almost died the same way for you,” Tane said. “In fact, we lost Sinive during your rescue, in case you forgot. Which is why we had to come here in the first place.”

“You’re too hard on him,” Jed told Lyra.

She sighed, shook her head. “Maybe you’re right. I told myself I wouldn’t say anything, but I couldn’t hold back.” She returned her attention to Tane. “So what happened to you anyway? Did one of the rock creatures get you?”

“No, none of that,” Tane said. “Sadly, I overextended myself. Summoning that grazer put me over the edge.”

“Is that what that was?” Jed said. “I’ve never seen anything like it. Though I’m sure if I delved deep enough into the Volur histories, I could find something.”

Lyra shot Jed an appraising look: it was the closest to a scowl Tane had ever seen her give the man. She obviously didn’t want him changing the subject.

If Jed noticed her gaze, he gave no indication of it, his expression remaining nonchalant. However, he didn’t say anything more.

Lyra returned her attention to Tane. “Overextended yourself. So you did this to yourself… unbelievable.”

Tane forced a grin. “Guess I’m a glutton for punishment.”

“You smile now, but it wasn’t funny at the time,” Lyra said grimly. “Not at all. You were bleeding from all orifices. Your nervous system was fried. I stole stamina from Gia, Chase, Jed, and even Nebb. It wasn’t enough. I could only partially heal you. And barely stabilized your condition. We had to rush you back to the ship, and the medical robots finished the job.”

“Well, thank you,” Tane said. “From the bottom of my heart.” He pursed his lips. “What about infection? We were worried about microcrillia equivalents?”

“So far, the medical robots say you’re clear,” Lyra said. “They’ll let us know if that changes.” She shook her head. “You have to stop doing this. You can’t put yourself needlessly in danger going forward. You’re the Bender of Worlds. The galaxy needs you.”

“Yeah, about that,” Tane said. “I’ve decided to head to a backwater planet somewhere. A quiet place to live out the rest of my days. I’m done. Saving Sinive was the last mission for the Bender of Worlds. I’m going to take off my World Bending hat and retire. You know how it is. Oh, but I do want that skeleton packed up. The grazer’s. We need to fit it into the cargo bays, in case anyone needs reviving at a future date.”

“I’m not sure how you could ever actually want to revive someone again after all that,” Muse said.

Lyra actually scowled this time, her gaze on the ceiling.

“Sorry,” the Mosaic’s AI said. “Gia uploaded the recordings her helmet made shortly after coming aboard. It looked like quite the fight.”

Lyra waved a dismissive hand, and for a moment Tane thought she was going to raise a Silence Cage or something to keep the AI from listening in. But she merely ignored the comment and returned her attention to Tane.

“We already dismantled most of the skeleton,” Lyra said. “And stowed as much as would fit in the cargo bays of both the Mosaic and the Red Grizzly.”

“Nice, thank you,” Tane said. “And what about the dwellers? Do we have any news on them? S’Wraathar?”

“While waiting for repairs to complete, we watched the approaches to the alien ships as you suggested, but the dwellers never returned. We weren’t able to destroy the vessels from orbit either—the automated defenses fired at us from the surface, and it was too much. We were forced to retreat.”

“Too bad,” Tane said. “I’d rest better at night knowing those dwellers were stranded on Aegean Tetragon.”

“So would I,” Lyra said.

“By the way, any idea what that thing down there was?” Tane asked.

“The giant insect?” Lyra answered.

“No,” Tane said. “The other one. Looked like a rock jammed into a tank.”

“Ah,” Lyra said. “My guess is that was a creodenti. Though why it would interfere with your Revive ritual, I can’t say. It seems obvious it wanted to kill you, though.”

“Creodenti,” Tane said. “I have a vague memory about them from the man whose imprint taught me to Siphon. During a conversation with his teacher, the creodenti were mentioned in passing as having evolved beyond this universe.”

“That is correct,” Lyra said. “They originally developed in our universe, but when they discovered how to Siphon their particular Essence, they eventually traveled to the universe that sourced it, leaving this one behind. Their path is similar to the one the archaeoceti followed.”

“Makes you wonder if humanity will ever permanently move to the Lumina,” Tane said.

“Unlikely,” Lyra said. “But if we do, it won’t be all of us. Only those who can wield the White.”

“Hardly seems fair,” Tane said.

“The universe isn’t fair,” Lyra said. “You know that by now. You exist, after all.”

“Good point,” Tane said. “Was that a note of jealousy I detected in your voice?”

“No,” Lyra said. “Only pity.”

“By the way, Positron made something for you,” Jed said into the uncomfortable silence that followed.

Tane glanced uncertainly at the Volur, and watched as Jed reached into his storage pouch and produced a small, gray item.

“Fashioned from one of the grazer’s finger bones, with help from a few cutting lasers,” Jed said.

It was a small bone crown. He remembered Tepethalean’s words:

Wearer of the Bone Crown.

Tane hadn’t told anyone in his party of the title the archaeoceti woman had bestowed upon him. Nor had any of them heard her speak the words, as far as he knew. And yet they had gone and made him a crown.

“Perhaps now isn’t a good time…” Lyra said.

“Why not?” Jed said. “The Emerald is part of who he is now. And he’ll need this to Siphon it on demand.”

Jed offered the crown to Tane, who ran an ID on the item.

Item: Bone Crown.

Item type: Legendary.

Weight: 125 g.

Effects: Unknown.

This crown was fashioned from the bones of a dead alien known as a grazer.

Tane regarded the item hesitantly, and then took it. The instant he touched it, he could feel the pleasure of the Emerald lurking inside, waiting for him to part the veil so that it could spark across his nerve cells.

He could also feel the personality of the grazer associated with that bone trying to get out, attempting to assert its influence over him. It fought and strove against him, and he had the impression of a wild animal trying to break free of its leash.

All of a sudden an image flashed into his mind of two big jaws chomping down.

Tane immediately set down the crown on the bedside table. “Thanks. I’ll put it to good use, I’m sure.” He hoped the Volurs didn’t notice the slight tremor of apprehension in his voice.

“There’s something else we need to discuss,” Lyra said. Her face had become very serious.

Tane raised an eyebrow. “Go ahead.” But he looked away to stare idly at the white bulkhead just across from him.

What does she want from me now?

“My sister…” Lyra said.

Tane turned toward her. From the anguish on her face, mixed with hope, he knew immediately what she wanted. “It’s not possible.”

“You have to create the Revive Essencework again,” Lyra said. “You have to bring back my sister. We owe her everything. Without her, you’d be in the hands of the dwellers right now, doing their bidding.”

“I thought I told you,” Tane said. “To Revive someone, I need a body. It says it right here in the Essencework description: ‘A complete body is required: the corpse can be in any state, as long as the requisite pieces are relatively intact.’”

“Then we’ll get you a body,” Lyra said.

“She’s been dead too long,” Tane said. “It won’t work, even if you desecrate her grave.”

“You don’t know that,” Lyra said. “Tell me where it says the dead body must be under a certain age. Or if the archaeoceti specifically mentioned that. Because I quote from what you just told me: the corpse can be in any state.”

“Okay fine, it doesn’t actually mention an age, and the archaeoceti never did, either,” Tane admitted. “But somehow, I have a feeling that reviving someone who has been dead for so long is beyond my first level abilities. And even if I could, the price would be very high. You thought the creatures we fought to save Sinive were difficult? I can only imagine what someone dead as long as your sister would bring. And we’d probably have to fend them off for a long time—maybe an hour. I doubt your sister would return to the living as fast as Sinive did.”

“You doubt this, yes, but you really have no idea do you?” Lyra said.

“No,” Tane admitted. “But I can tell you that at the Revive ritual I was present for, the archaeoceti who did the raising had an extremely high level in the Essencework.”

“There you go,” Lyra said. “The archaeoceti can bring my sister back, then, if you can’t. I know they can. There has to be a way. I refuse to believe that you can bring back Sinive, and I can’t restore my Gwenyth. I refuse to allow the universe to behave so unfairly in this manner.”

“And yet as you just told me, the universe isn’t fair,” Tane said.

Lyra didn’t answer.

Tane glanced at Jed. “You’re not going to back her up on this, are you?”

Jed held Tane’s gaze, keeping silent. Tane suspected the Volur had already argued with Lyra about this, and had lost spectacularly.

“The archaeoceti woman gave you a pyramid,” Lyra said. “You never mentioned it to any of us, but I saw. You can use this to open another portal to the Khaeota. Am I right?”

Tane hesitated. Then: “I can.”

“So you can open the way for me,” Lyra pressed.

“Well sure, but if I open the portal while we’re aboard, you’ll end up in deep space,” Tane said. “Well, assuming manmade structures don’t exist in orbit while inside the Khaeota, like the Umbra.”

“In orbit?” Lyra said. “You seem to have misunderstood… while we’re aboard the Mosaic, we’re on the surface of Aegean Tetragon at this very moment.”

“But you mentioned we traveled into orbit,” Tane told her. “And were forced to retreat when the dweller ships fired at us from the surface…”

“Yes,” Lyra said. “We retreated to the far hemisphere, and landed to make repairs.”

“Ah,” Tane said.

Jed chimed in: “The AIs of the Mosaic and Red Grizzly are observing all approaches to their respective vessels, but seeing as we’re on the opposite side of the planet, it’s doubtful the dwellers will attack. Assuming they ever return from the Khaeota.”

“So you see,” Lyra continued. “All we have to do is walk outside into the planet-wide jungle, and you can open the gateway to the archaeoceti realm.”

“I don’t think so,” Tane said.

She studied him with those piercing brown eyes of hers. “Either open the portal, or do not. It doesn’t matter: I’ve already made up my mind. I’ll find a way to reach the archaeoceti without your help, if I have to. Either way, our paths diverge now.”

Tane stared at her, feeling a sudden fear. “But you can’t—”

“You have proven that death can be conquered,” Lyra interrupted. “And now that I’ve seen the proof, I’ll do whatever it takes to bring my sister back. I can’t let her go. I’m sorry. She supersedes everything, even my duty to you. To fulfill my dying sister’s last wish I swore I would protect you. But some things are even more important than vows to the dead. If there is a way I can save her, I have to try. Maybe it’s selfish… in fact, I know it is. But I believe, truly believe in my core, that you’re more than ready to face whatever comes your way. You no longer need us.”

Tane glanced at Jed. “I take it you’re going with her?”

Jed met his eyes unblinkingly. “I am, Engineer.”

Tane lay back, closed his eyes. “Damn Volurs.” He sighed deeply. “All right. Guess I’ll go, too.”

“We only need you to open the gate,” Lyra said. “You don’t—”

“I’m coming with you,” Tane said more firmly, looking at them.

“After everything you’ve already been through, I can’t ask—” Lyra began.

“You don’t even have to ask,” Tane interrupted. “You’ve been there for me, throughout all my trials. Of course I’m coming. We’ll save your sister, and then I can finally retire the World Bender’s hat.”

Lyra frowned. “I can’t allow it on principal. You already agreed to stop putting yourself needlessly in danger. This counts as one of those needless moments. You will open the gate for us, and nothing more.”

“That’s all well and good,” Tane said. “And yet the only way I’m going to open up the gateway to the archaeoceti universe is if I come with you. Sure, Tepethalean won’t be very happy to see me, but hey, she’ll just have to deal with it.”

“We’ll give you some time to rest and think it over,” Lyra said.

“I don’t need time to think it over,” Tane said. “I’ve already made up my mind. Inform the crew of my decision. Tell them they don’t have to come.”

“Somehow, I have a feeling they all will,” Jed said. The Volur bowed his head, and then he and Lyra left Tane to his thoughts.

When they were gone, he folded one arm over his chest to grip the opposite bicep, and then brought his forearm up to his face to support his chin on a fist.

I can’t believe I agreed.

18

As he lay there in sickbay, contemplating what he had agreed to, Tane felt something calling out to him. Something… sensual.

He lowered his arms, turning toward the bedside table and the crown it held. Yes, that was the source of the siren’s call. That crown sung to him, promising unbound joy. It was all he could do to resist putting it on right then.

That crown will be the end of me…

His eyes drifted to the storage pouch that sat beside it.

Tane quickly opened the pouch, grabbed the crown, and unceremoniously dumped it into a random slot inside. He sealed the device and sat back.

That was better. Nothing was calling to him anymore.

He wasn’t sure he’d ever touch the crown again, nor part the veil into the Emerald Essence it contained. It was too dangerous.

But I might need that grazer to fight at my side at some point. And I might need to Revive someone.

Unfortunately, the cost seemed a little high at the moment. The temptation to continue Siphoning the Emerald was too great. He’d already nearly died doing just that. Besides, there was a chance he’d lose himself to the grazer, and allow its personality to take hold. Such a fate seemed little better than letting the TSN or the dwellers implant a control chip in his head.

Tane focused his attention on the flashing icon in the lower right of his HUD. He had some leveling notifications, it seemed. He pulled up the appropriate window.

Level up. Your overall level is now 14! Neural pathways have been enhanced and reinforced! You now have an attribute point to allocate.

Level up. Emerald Siphoning is now Level 2. You may now master more complex Essenceworks. Works are 20% less wearying.

New Emerald Essenceworks have been unlocked.

Level two already? That was nice. He supposed that the imprint for Emerald Siphoning that the archaeoceti had given him had already been close to level two. Then again, he had been Siphoning the Emerald Essence through his body for a relatively long time, throughout the entirety of the previous battle, in fact. It made some sense that he would have leveled it already.

He navigated immediately to the Emerald Essence Specific tab in his HUD to see what he had unlocked.

Emerald Siphoning Level 2 Essenceworks.

Illusion. With this ability, you can make an object as large as an entire starship appear to be something else entirely. You can also change your appearance, and that of your friends. The effect lasts for one hour. Higher levels increase the duration.

Lightning Storm. Attack a group of foes with green lightning rained down from the sky. Higher levels increase the damage and area of effect.

Interesting. The White Essence Forked Lightning work was probably the closest to Lightning Storm, but the White version required the wielder to attain a high level before multiple targets could be struck simultaneously. It seemed that Lightning Storm attacked groups from the get-go. He could only imagine how powerful it would get when he leveled it.

Assuming I dare use it.

Illusion also sounded very interesting. He wouldn’t have to worry about masking his features for the facial recognition algorithms if his face was completely different. Also, he knew thanks to the memories that came along with the work that it would function up close, even if he was confronted by human security forces, for example.

Still, he could only imagine how draining those two works would be on his stamina. Plus he wasn’t looking forward to the fight for control with the grazer. He could see himself using those works only sparingly, especially considering he had already decided the cost was too high.

With the immense stamina drain of those new Essenceworks in mind, Tane put his bonus attribute point into Endurance, bringing his total to twenty-four, or forty-five with the Beam Hilt I, Chrysalium Star Rings, and Endurance Necklace I equipped.

A call from Sinive came in. Voice only. He accepted.

“Is this true?” Sinive said before he could get in a word. “You just finished visiting the archaeoceti to save me, and now you want to go back?”

“Yes,” Tane said. “I…”

“You can’t,” Sinive said. “You didn’t see what you looked like, lying in that swamp, covered in your own blood. You have no idea.”

“Yeah well, I have to go,” Tane said.

“You don’t,” Sinive pleaded. “Lyra explained the situation to me. She told me she wants to go alone, but you insisted, despite her protests.”

“Yeah, I did,” Tane said. “And let me guess, she told you to try to talk me out of it.”

Sinive’s silence told him that was precisely what had happened.

“Look, I can’t explain it to you,” Tane said. “I can’t hope for you to understand. But I owe them. And if she wants her sister saved, then I have to help.”

“Are you sure that’s the real reason?” Sinive said. “Are you sure you’re not just trying to avoid losing them?”

“I—” Tane paused. “I guess I’ve grown fond of them, that’s true.”

“And what about me?” Sinive said.

“You know I’m fond of you,” Tane said. He couldn’t help the gentleness that crept into his voice. “You know I’d do anything for you.”

“Oh really?” Sinive said. “Then stay. Do it for me.”

“I’d do anything… except that,” Tane said.

“Ah,” Sinive said. “What if I stayed behind?”

“I actually wouldn’t mind that,” Tane said. “Because you’d be safe, here. But I know you won’t.”

“And how can you be so sure?” Sinive pressed.

“Because I know you,” Tane said.

“So you’re going to let me come and risk my life?” Sinive said. “Apparently if I die, there’s no coming back again.”

“I know that,” Tane said. “But I won’t stop you if you want to come. I believe we have to follow our own paths. Besides, I doubt I could stop you if I tried.”

“Damn it,” Sinive said. “Sometimes I hate you.” Her voice seemed pained, as if she were holding back tears, or perhaps was crying already. “We just got back. We haven’t even had a chance to spend any time together.”

“I know,” Tane said. “Visit me now.”

“No,” Sinive said. “You need to save your strength. We all do, for what’s coming. And besides, I want to punish you.”

He could tell from her flat, defeated tone that she wanted to visit him more than anything in that moment. “But you’re only punishing yourself.”

“Oh I know,” Sinive said. “But it’ll hurt you more, I think.”

“I’m really sorry,” Tane said. “For everything. I wish I didn’t have these powers inside me. But I do. And I have to use them to help my friends.”

“Don’t wish that… never wish something like that,” Sinive said. “Because if you didn’t have those powers we would’ve never met. You’d be stuck on that backwater world in the Outrim.”

“That’s actually almost preferable at the moment,” Tane said.

“Do you really mean that?” Sinive said.

“No,” Tane admitted. “But being stuck on a backwater world with you is something I’d definitely like, yes. A world where there wasn’t much time to do anything but… well, you get my drift.”

“There you go, thinking with your pants again,” Sinive said. “Comments like that aren’t even attractive, you know that right? In fact, they’re a turn off.”

“Yeah, I’m not very good at this,” Tane said. “Relationships I mean.”

“Is that what we have?” Sinive said.

“I don’t know,” Tane said. “It’s what I would like, at least.”

“Interesting,” Sinive said.

Tane half chuckled. She was still playing games, after all they’d been through. It made him sad. But then again maybe he deserved it for intending to bring her into danger so soon after reviving her.

“By the way, do you really consider Lyra your friend?” Sinive said.

“What do you mean?” Tane asked.

“You said, and I quote, ‘I have to use my powers to help my friends.’”

“Ah,” Tane said. “Yes, I believe I do. She saved me from myself on Xalantas. If that’s not a friend, I don’t know what is.”

“Have you ever paused to consider that her actions might have been self-serving?” Sinive said. “That she merely wanted to preserve her precious World Bender? Maybe so that you could save her sister one day?”

“At the time, she didn’t know I could revive the dead,” Tane said.

“Are you so certain?” Sinive said. “She claims to have studied all the ancient treatises written by Tiberius. And all the prophecies. She’s also probably studied the other Essence races. Archaeoceti. Creodenti. Maybe she knew quite well that you’d attain the ability one day. And that by fulfilling her promise to her sister, she was in fact ensuring she had a way to restore her to life.”

“I doubt it,” Tane said. “There’s no way Lyra could have known I’d one day meet the archaeoceti. Especially considering that prophecies aren’t real in the first place.”

“Yes, but she knew there were paths you could follow,” Sinive said. “Those prophecies and treatises would have hinted at them. She also knew it wouldn’t take much to guide you down one of them. The path of the archaeoceti, and their knowledge of Revive, for example. She could have been planning to eventually bring you to Aegean Tetragon from the very beginning.”

“Well I guess anything is possible,” Tane said. “But it was actually G’allanthamas who told me the archaeoceti could help you, and not her.”

“Maybe she put the dweller up to it,” Sinive said.

“Somehow I have a hard time imagining Lyra as the master puppeteer,” Tane said. “But look, I’ve already made up my mind: I’m going to take her to the Khaeota. If there’s any possible way to save her sister, I plan to attempt it.”

“Fine,” Sinive said. She paused, then: “Let me know when it’s time to go.”

“I will, but first come down to sickbay so we can—” But before Tane could finish, the comm band disconnected.

Well, that was rude.

Then again, what did he expect? He had only just restored Sinive, and forced her to witness his own near death, and now he was going to be risking his life all over again only a few hours later.

He considered sending her a text, begging for forgiveness, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He was too proud.

She should be the one begging for my forgiveness. Groveling on her knees…

Tane snorted at the thought. Somehow, he couldn’t see Sinive ever doing something like that.

He wished this star system had a connection to the Galnet. He wanted to check his mail, see if Mom and Dad had sent him a message. Oh well. That was the downside of visiting space that was unexplored by humans.

Two hours passed, and by then he felt well enough to use the two Essences he’d need to unlock the pyramid. There was no point in delaying further, so he told Muse to inform those who were coming to meet him near the airlock. The medical robot gave him a clean bill of health, and cleared him for duty. He still showed no signs of any microcrillia equivalent infections.

He was a bit surprised to see everyone at the airlock, queued up in a long line outside it in their spacesuits. The only one not wearing a spacesuit was Jed, but his power armor was capable of pressurization on its own. He’d already activated his faceplate.

Jed and Nebb helped Tane suit up, and he finished in no time. Positron had 3D printed a replacement faceplate for Tane’s helmet, so he was able to achieve full pressurization immediately.

When he exited the Mosaic, Tane found himself standing in a makeshift clearing in the jungle, mostly formed by the searing heat produced by the vessel’s landing. The ashes of blackened trees and undergrowth surrounded him.

G’allanthamas was waiting amid the razed rainforest. “Do we really have to do this?”

“You don’t,” Tane transmitted.

G’allanthamas fell in beside him. “Actually, I do.”

Tane couldn’t help but smile. “My loyal friend.”

Tane walked fifty meters from the ship, leaving behind the burned clearing. When he arrived at the intact jungle that surrounded it, he reached into his storage pouch and retrieved the pyramid.

“Get into position,” Tane said.

Jed and Chase moved forward, taking up guard positions on either side where Tane planned to create the gate. Jed drew his sword, while others in the party had pistols and rifles at the ready. Lyra held her staff in one hand, and her beam hilt the other. Even though the team was on the opposite side of the planet, they were still worried that the Amaranth might somehow use the resultant gate to return.

Tane Siphoned Dark and White into the pyramid, and felt the hint of Emerald stored inside and the pleasure it promised. He wondered if the pyramid contained a grazer bone at its core.

The item promptly disintegrated, leaving dust in his open palm, and the pleasure faded with it.

The gateway opened amid the foliage, ahead of Jed and Chase, more than big enough to fit Tane’s party, including G’allanthamas. Tane shielded his eyes against the incredible brightness, which even the automatically resizing aperture of his helmet couldn’t diminish.

Before Tane could give the order to enter, several shapes emerged from within that brightness. Squinting, Tane saw that they were glowing vines, creeping across the surrounding foliage.

Jed raised his sword defensively, obviously prepared to strike at the closest, while others on the team pointed pistols and rifles at the advancing creepers.

“Don’t fire!” Tane cried.

The vines approached him. At the opening, they continued to pass by Jed and Chase, ignoring the pair, at least for now.

“Tane…” Lyra said uncertainly.

“Don’t fire,” Tane insisted.

Those vines came right up to him and the other party members, and then began to intertwine, folding upwards, forming a humanoid shape. In moments a glowing woman made of those vines stood before him, clothed in illusory flesh. Her features were different this time, so Tane thought it wasn’t Tepethalean.

“Why have you returned already?” the woman said. The voice definitely wasn’t Tepethalean’s. Well, they were on the planet’s opposite hemisphere, after all.

Tane beckoned toward Lyra. “There is another who must be saved. A sister, who died many years ago.”

The vine woman turned to gaze at Lyra. “How long ago?”

“Over twenty years.” Lyra said.

“Ah,” the vine woman said. “We do not freely give the gift of Revive. You must pay a price.”

“I will pay whatever price is needed of me,” Lyra said.

The vine woman held out a hand, and Lyra took it. The archaeoceti walked Lyra toward the gateway, and the trailing vines retreated in front of her, into the brightness.

Tane took a step forward.

The vine woman paused to glance over her shoulder at Tane. “You cannot go with her.”

“I have to,” Tane said.

“This journey she must do on her own,” the archaeoceti said. “I will help her, as I can, but your time is done here.”

“So then we’ll wait for her,” Tane said.

“Her chosen path will be long and difficult,” the vine woman said. “She will not return quickly. She could be gone weeks. Maybe months.”

“Ah.”

“The galaxy is in dire need,” the archaeoceti said. “The Gravity Heathens are accelerating their pace, swallowing suns faster than ever. You cannot delay. Unite the humans and the dwellers. Face the Heathens before they become too powerful for any of you. The fact that a member of the creodenti was able to attack you speaks volumes. The boundaries between this universe and the others is already beginning to weaken, thanks to the Heathens. They are accelerating the destruction of this place. You cannot hide away and hope to escape your destiny. It isn’t possible. Eventually, the Heathens will come for you, if you don’t go to them first.”

“How did you know about the attack by the creodenti?” Tane said.

“I felt the disturbance even in the Khaeota, thanks to my ties to this universe,” the vine woman said. “You will have to face the creodenti before this is done. Seek the Paramount Leader of your TSN. He will take you to them.”

“Uh, it’s not like I can just knock on the front doors of the TSN,” Tane said.

“You will find a way,” the archaeoceti said. “You must unite the humans and dwellers, after all. It is your destiny.”

Though he had no intention of doing what the woman asked, he decided to humor her.

“Okay, so let’s say I go,” Tane told her. “And somehow convince the Paramount Leader to take me to the creodenti. When I reach them, I’ll have to face the rock creature again?”

“Not that particular creature,” the woman said. “I believe it belongs to a different faction. The other creodenti may or may not be more receptive to you. Probably the latter. But go now, and complete your destiny. This human woman will in turn complete hers.”

The archaeoceti led Lyra to the portal, and together the two stepped inside and vanished.

The rift remained, shrinking at the same slow pace as the previous gateway before it.

Jed turned toward Tane. “I’m sure you always knew this day would come.”

“What day?” Tane said, fearing the answer.

“The day we part,” the Volur said. “I have to go, too.”

“But you can’t…” Tane said. “You heard what the archaeoceti woman said. Lyra has to complete her destiny.”

“But the archaeoceti never told you Lyra could’t have help,” Jed said. “The alien plant implied that only you could not come. Me, on the other hand...”

“No,” Tane said. “I need you.”

"I’m sorry,” Jed said. “I have to go with her. I owe her too much… our bond, it’s too deep. I can’t simply leave her. Listen to me. You don’t need me. I have done all I can for you in terms of guidance, and the shaping of your character. I’m sad to say this, but I’m not sure there’s much more you can really learn from me at this point. Sure, I can teach you more of the White Essence, but I believe you’re on the road to much more powerful works than anything I can ever offer you. You are the World Bender, after all. I’m afraid we part here, my friend."

Tane balled his hands into fists. “I can’t do this alone. I just can’t.”

“You’re not alone,” Jed said. “You have Sinive with you, and the others. And remember, Lyra and I will always be with you, no matter what happens.”

“But what if I need Healing again?” Tane said. “Lyra is the only one who can help me. And you.”

Jed gazed sadly into his eyes. “Let her go. Let me go. I swear to you, I will return when this is done. I swear I will someday rejoin your side, if I can.”

Tane found himself tearing up. He didn't know why. He quickly looked away, feeling like an idiot.

He felt strong arms squeezing into the chest assembly of his spacesuit and realized Jed was hugging him in his battle armor. Tane had never seen the Volur cry before, but behind that faceplate, the big man shed tears.

Jed patted Tane on the back and then pulled away. He turned around, quickly, likely feeling just as awkward as Tane for having cried.

Jed took Gia aside to talk privately. They spoke on an unshared band, their conversation for their ears alone.

The former corrector seemed to be pleading, perhaps begging to come with him, but it was obvious from Jed’s standoffish body language that he denied her. Finally she hugged him. Tane could see the tears streaking her cheeks behind her faceplate. When she released him, Jed walked toward the gateway.

Gia remained in place, watching him.

A hand wrapped around Tane’s. He glanced to the side, and saw Sinive standing there, gripping his glove.

Jed stepped through the bright gateway, and when he was gone Gia straightened, and then walked zombie-like toward the Mosaic.

“I’m going to miss them,” Sinive said.

“We all will,” Tane said.

“Not me,” G’allanthamas said. “Er, did I just speak that thought aloud?”

19

Tane decided not to heed the archaeoceti woman’s advice. Instead, after Nebb and Chase had entered the nearby Red Grizzly, and the others the Mosaic, Tane chose to wait for Lyra and Jed to return.

He told Gia to have Muse monitor the receding gateway, and to tell him if the pair arrived. Throughout the day he kept asking if there were any signs of the two, but Muse always responded in the negative. As the gate became smaller and smaller, Tane began to abandon any hope that they would return before it closed entirely.

It took all day, but finally the gate sealed.

Jed and Lyra were gone.

But that didn’t mean the two of them wouldn’t suddenly arrive in this universe. In fact, Tane was convinced they might appear at any time, sent back by the archaeoceti. He decided his retirement could wait a little longer. What were a few days in the overall scheme of things, after all?

That night, Tane found himself sitting alone with Sinive in her cramped quarters aboard the Mosaic.

She sat beside him on the bunk, staring into his eyes with obvious yearning, but before he could kiss her, she shyly looked away.

Tane turned her face toward his and planted his lips upon hers. It felt wonderful, at least at first. But in truth, the joy he felt, and the pleasure that would come with making love to her, paled in comparison to the sheer bliss that waited for him inside his storage pouch. Nothing could compare to the joy of the Emerald Essence. Nothing.

And so his mind wandered. Everything that had happened flashed through his mind. Sinive’s death at the hands of S’Wraathar. The journey to the Khaeota and the struggle to find the archaeoceti. And then the terrible battle to revive Sinive.

“I want to feel what it’s like again,” Sinive said between each kiss. “I want you so badly.”

Tane tried to match her kisses, but his timing was hopelessly off, and his mouth movements were always a second or two behind hers.

Mercifully Sinive pulled away. She didn’t say anything, didn’t look at him. She seemed to feel embarrassed more than anything else. Unwanted.

“I’m sorry, I’m just not feeling it tonight,” Tane told her. Will I ever feel it again?

“Neither am I,” Sinive said. “I can’t get myself into it.”

He thought she was lying about that for his sake, especially considering her previous outburst. What an amazing girl.

“Let’s just hold each other,” Tane said.

“Okay.”

He hugged her close, just hugged her. And that was good enough.

They remained in that pose for at least five minutes.

And then Sinive broke the silence.

“You’re not going to the TSN, are you?” Sinive said, still holding him.

“Nope,” Tane said.

“Even after what that vine lady told you?” Sinive asked.

“I’m never going back,” Tane replied. “As I told you, me and civilization, we don’t mesh. Not anymore.”

“But she said the Paramount Leader could take you to the creodenti,” Sinive pressed. “And that you’d have to unite the humans and dwellers before this was done…”

“If I did everything plants told me to do,” Tane quipped. “I’d probably be in a whole lot of trouble.”

Sinive pulled away and folded her arms across her breasts. “I’m being serious.”

“As am I,” Tane said. When she continued frowning at him, he added: “Look, I don’t see the point. Getting captured by the TSN isn’t really all that high on my to-do list.”

“But what about your destiny?” Sinive said.

“Destiny,” Tane spat. “This coming from the woman who once told me I shouldn’t be a passive observer in life. That she had fought hard against the hand fate had dealt her. That I should, too, and that if I did, I could make my own destiny. Well I’m doing that, Sinive. I’m making my own destiny. I’m not tied into some fate forced upon me by the universe, or others.”

“But what if you are tied?” Sinive said. “What if you can’t escape the hand fate has dealt, because it’s simply too strong. What if the universe made you for a reason? Gave you these abilities so you could save us all?”

Tane regarded her uncertainly. “Don’t tell me you, too, have been infected by this World Bender nonsense.”

“But think about it for a second,” Sinive said. “If the universe gave you these powers for a reason, you can’t turn your back on your abilities. You just can’t.”

Tane shook his head. He didn’t want to hear this right now.

She wrapped an arm around his waist. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. And you’re completely right: your fate is yours to mold.”

He planted a gentle peck on her neck, under her ear. “It’s fine. I just... I guess I have a lot on my mind.”

“I’m sure you do,” Sinive said. “So that vine lady back there... I’m assuming that was one of the archaeoceti?”

“Good guess,” Tane said dryly.

“Thanks,” Sinive said. “One more alien crossed off my bucket list.”

“You have aliens on your bucket list?” Tane asked.

“I do,” Sinive replied. “I want to see them all.”

“What else do you have on your bucket list that I should know about?” Tane said.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Sinive told him, pulling away to give him a mischievous look.

“Yeah I would,” Tane said.

“Why do you think I’m not telling you?” Sinive said.

Tane shrugged. “Fine, then I won’t tell you mine.”

“All right, I’ll give you one,” Sinive said. “I’ve always wanted to try gravity surfing.”

“You mean like in gas giants?” Tane said.

“Yup!”

“Okay, definitely count me out of that one,” Tane said.

“It’d be fun...” Sinive said.

“We’re obviously not going to be working on our bucket lists together,” Tane said.

“Okay, are you going to tell me one on your list, or what?” Sinive said. “Fair is fair. I already know you wanted to come into space, and you’ve done that. So what else is there?”

“Hmm,” Tane said. “Well, as you know, I’m a bit of a pianist on the side. Though probably extremely rusty by now, given I haven’t practiced in what seems an eternity. Then again, with my chip, maybe I’m still golden.”

“Okay...” Sinive said. “So what does that have to do with your bucket list? You want to master a certain song or something?”

“Not at all,” Tane said. “Truth is, I’ve always wanted to have a hit. I mean on the streaming networks. I’ve recorded a few songs, but they never really caught on. It’s always been my dream to pull up the main streaming channels and find one of my recordings listed in the top five.”

“Do you sing, too?” Sinive asked.

“Oh no,” Tane said. “I just play piano.”

“Well, that’s a nice dream,” Sinive said. “Definitely something to aspire to.”

“Yes,” Tane said. “But probably not something I’ll ever achieve. Not now.” Given my notoriety.

“You don’t know that,” Sinive said.

Tane didn’t answer. He did offer her a smile, though. He hoped it didn’t look too forced.

“You still want to own your own ship someday?” Tane asked.

“Of course I do,” Sinive said.

“Maybe I could help you with that,” Tane said.

“I’d love that.” Sinive kissed him on the cheek.

There wasn’t really anything more to say on that subject, so he kept quiet.

Sinive stared for a moment at the bulkhead beside her. “So how long are we going to wait here for Jed and Lyra?”

“As long as it takes,” Tane answered.

“What about the dwellers?” Sinive said. “What if they return before then and take their ships into orbit? They’ll hunt for us, you know.”

“Well, we’ll leave if it comes to that,” Tane said.

“And remember, it could take weeks or months before Lyra and Jed return…” Sinive said.

“Yeah, but that archaeoceti lady doesn’t know what she’s talking about,” Tane said.

“Doesn’t she?” Sinive said. “Uh, I think if your people invented Revive, you’d know what it took to bring back someone who was dead for more than twenty years.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Tane admitted. “Even so, I’m sure they’ll be back within the week. And then we can go.”

“But not to the TSN,” Sinive said.

“Yeah, no,” Tane said. “I’m thinking of some remote system, far from the reaches of the TSN, or anyone else for that matter. You’re welcome to join me. Along with the others.”

“But you just said you wanted to help me get my own ship?” Sinive said.

“Sure,” Tane said. “And I will. I just won’t be on it.”

Sinive shook her head. “You used to want to travel into space so badly. To see the stars, as you put it, and explore all the different planets and systems this galaxy had to offer. But now you just want to settle on some far-flung planet and trap yourself there for the rest of your days... what happened to the old Tane I used to know?”

“He died when you did,” Tane said softly.

She immediately lowered her gaze.

“What was it like?” Tane asked into the void of silence that followed.

“What? Being dead?” Sinive answered.

“Yeah,” Tane said.

“Darkness,” Sinive said. “Death is darkness. I don’t know why people want to die in their sleep. Now that I know what death is, I’d rather die in the light, so I can see it one last time.”

“So there was nothing after death?” Tane said. “Nothing at all?”

“Not at first,” Sinive said. “I didn’t feel. Didn’t see. Didn’t think. I just existed. Imagine yourself in a sensory deprivation chamber, but without emotions of any kind or thoughts running through your head: no memories, images, music. No words. Just the darkness.

“I was alone, and yet I wasn’t. I was everyone, and no one. I know that doesn’t make sense, I know it’s cryptic, but it’s what I experienced. I was the universe. As you are, and all of us who claim sentience. As are those objects and things that we don’t otherwise associate with life. They are as much the universe as we are. For you see, the universe is alive, and we’re simply extensions of it, part of the same being. We just don’t know it. I believe now that the purpose of life is for the universe to experience form. To experience the greatness that is itself. Without life, the universe wouldn’t even know it existed.”

“Geez,” Tane said.

“My thoughts exactly.” Sinive paused. “So I told you there was nothing at first, save that darkness, but before I came back, finally a spark emerged in the infinite night. I didn’t so much as see it, or even feel it. I just knew it was there. And that spark grew bigger and bigger until it consumed me. That spark was you.”

Tane pursed his lips. “I suppose it was, at that. So I wonder... if we’re all the same, then that means aliens are just as much a part of this universe as we are.”

“Not all of them, I think,” Sinive said. “Only certain aliens are part of it: those that were born in this universe. Others hailing from different universes, like the dwellers, are part of separate universe entities. Though all the universes are intrinsically linked, they’re all different beings. At least that’s what I believe now. Maybe they’re really all different facets of the same being, I don’t know for sure.”

“So that’s why you were hitting me with that ‘the universe made me for a reason’ crap before,” Tane said. “If it was alive, and in danger, instinctively it would want to save itself from any perceived threats.”

“You got it,” Sinive said.

“But you just said the universe only knows it exists thanks to us,” Tane told her. “So how would it even know if there were any threats to its existence?”

“I suppose it wouldn’t,” Sinive said. “Unless somehow our collective consciousness can interpret external threats.”

Tane pondered her words. “Okay, so if each universe is a separate entity, like you say, that could mean they’re in competition with one another. And maybe not even realize it, unless of course we bring up that collective consciousness concept of yours again. Which makes me wonder: if what you’re saying is true, it’s probably possible that an entire universe could die. And with it, all life from that universe.”

“I think you’re right,” Sinive said.

“That’s what the archaeoceti told me,” Tane said.

“What?”

“That if the Z’Antamaraan succeed in their plans, this universe will die,” Tane said. “I’m starting to wonder if the archaeoceti are on to something. Then again...”

“The Zana-what?” Sinive said.

“The beings at the heart of the galaxy?” Tane said. “The Gravity Born?”

“Oh, them,” Sinive said. “Well, they’ll most certainly destroy this galaxy if they succeed in snuffing out all the stars by drawing them into the galactic core. But the entire universe? Don’t know about that. The universe is a big place. Extremely big.”

“Well, get this,” Tane said. “According to the archaeoceti, the same group of Z’Antamaraan exist inside every galactic core across our universe. At the same time.”

“You serious?” Sinive asked.

“That’s what they said,” Tane answered. “I’m not sure I believe it myself, but if it’s true, it means the Gravity Born are drawing stars into the core of every galaxy. Simultaneously.”

“All right, so I take it back,” Sinive said. “These Zana things could destroy the entire universe. And here I thought you were only going to save the galaxy... I wonder if these Gravity Born are aware of what they are. That they’re extensions of whatever home universe birthed them. Maybe they even have a reason to destroy our universe. One that seems perfectly rational to them.”

“The archaeoceti suggested they want to absorb the energy of our universe into their own,” Tane said.

“There you go,” Sinive said. “And yet you still don’t want to do anything to help...”

“It’s not that I don’t want to do anything,” Tane said. “It’s more that there isn’t really anything I can do. At least, I have no idea what. I can’t stop the Z’Antamaraan. I don’t know where to start.”

“But the archaeoceti laid out a plan for you,” Sinive said. “I was there when the vine lady told you to find the creodenti. That you’d have to face them before you could take on the Zana dudes. By confronting our Paramount Leader.”

“Actually, the vine lady as you call her said I’d have to face the creodenti ‘before this is done,’ which could mean a hundred different things,” Tane said. “And the part about confronting the Paramount leader? Yeah, see, that right there makes the archaeoceti lose all credibility. ‘Seek the Paramount Leader.’ I don’t think so. Confronting the Paramount Leader is the worst thing I can do right now. I’m too inexperienced. Mostly low level in all my abilities. And I’m not sure I buy the whole our-universe-is-doomed bit either. Besides, if it is doomed, I’m sure it’s demise is probably many millions of years away. Billions, probably. We’re talking about the universe here. There are a lot of stars in the sky, after all. The Z’Antamaraan can’t move them instantaneously.”

Sinive sat back. “Well. I don’t know if you’re right or wrong. And I guess it doesn’t really matter. You’re making your own choices, and not letting the universe or fate or anyone else make them for you. That’s all that matters.”

“It is,” Tane agreed.

She smiled slightly. “That was quite the interesting philosophical discussion. Energizing, even. That’s why I like you so much. We can talk about things no one else ever does. That no one else can. We’re comfortable enough with each other, and intelligent enough, to do so. I’m not sure how much of what we talked about is true. Maybe none of it is. Maybe all of it.”

“But that’s why it’s philosophical,” Tane said. “It doesn’t really matter whether the universe is alive or dead, because we’ll never be able to prove it either way. All that matters is we talked about it, and considered the possibilities.”

“What’s the quote I’m looking for?” Sinive said. “Here: it’s not about the destination, but the journey.”

“Exactly.”

Sinive was looking at him in a way that made him feel slightly aroused, her eyes shining with a sudden desire.

“You know, women are turned on by the mind,” she said. Her voice had become slightly husky. “And you’ve certainly done a good job on that front. Too bad you’re not in the mood.”

“Actually, you know what?” Tane said. “Our little talk seems to have rejuvenated my libido.”

“Well now,” Sinive said demurely. “We can’t let your rejuvenated libido go to waste, can we?”

“Nope. It’s time to leave behind the metaphysical.” Tane wrapped his arms around her hips. “And to concentrate on the physical.”

“I’m all for that,” Sinive said, kissing him on the lips.

20

Tane blinked wearily. A bright glow shone into his eyes from above. It seemed to belong to several light bars. They seemed odd, somehow, and he didn’t recall those bars being shaped that way when he had closed his eyes… also, underneath him the bunk seemed strangely firm: he had to wonder if he’d rolled onto the floor.

He extended a hand and pressed down. Sure enough, he felt a smooth, hard surface underneath him.

He sat up in a confusion.

He was indeed on the floor, except he wasn’t inside Sinive’s quarters anymore. The cramped compartment had been replaced by what could best be described as an office of some kind. There was a bare desk, with two visitors chairs. Some cupboards. A three-hundred-and-sixty-degree lightfield camera for live streaming. Everything was blurry and insubstantial. Just like himself.

And he realized now why he thought the overhead light bars were strange: they bathed the room in a reddish black hue.

He was relieved to find Sinive curled up beside him.

He shook her. “Sinive, wake up.” His words sounded on two octaves simultaneously, both higher and lower than his original voice. “Wake up!”

She stirred, and rubbed her eyes.

Tane stood. Now that he looked more closely, he realized the walls were covered in a strange greenish patina, like the kind you found on old copper. That patina was hued towards the red band thanks to the lights.

“My heck, what kind of dream is this?” Sinive said. Her voice distorted into two octaves just like his. “Whoa.”

“I don’t think it’s a dream,” Tane said. He pinched himself three times.

“Where are we, the Umbra?” Sinive said.

“Or some mirror version of it,” Tane said.

“If this isn’t a dream, why are we wearing clothes?” Sinive said. “Considering we fell asleep naked…”

She was dressed in her usual white dress, while Tane was in his plain T shirt and elasto jeans. Neither of them had their storage pouches, nor any other weapons or accessories.

“Dunno.” Tane couldn’t feel the White or Dark Essence waiting beyond the edges of reality. He glanced at his arms. No threads of the Dark emerged from him, as could be expected when near gravity wells in the Umbra. Maybe the planet wasn’t a geodynamo. But why then could he not access the White Essence?

“Can you Siphon?” Sinive asked.

“No,” Tane said.

“Neither can I,” she said. “This definitely isn’t the Umbra. And if that’s true, at least on the bright side we don’t have to worry about microcrillia infection.”

“Yeah,” Tane said. But potentially something worse.

He felt it then: fear. Another sign that they weren’t in the true Umbra, which always had an emotion damping effect upon him.

He went to the window. Like the office interior, the landscape beyond was shaded in a reddish black hue. Thick smog or haze of some kind choked out the skyline, while closer, skyscrapers poked through, appearing blurry to the eye.

Above, the sun sat high in the red-black sky. He could observe it head-on without hurting his eyes, and it appeared as a blood red disk hovering in place above the smog.

He spotted a neon sign at the base of the building across the street. The words read: “Best Rub.” A muscular man was depicted beside the words, his big hands shown prominently.

Tane looked away and glanced at the sign again. Neither the wordage, nor the man, had changed.

“What are you doing?” Sinive asked, coming up beside him.

“In dreams, signs always change when you look at them a second time.” Tane averted his gaze and looked a final time. “The words are the same. This isn’t a dream.”

Sinive stared through the window. “We’re in some kind of red light district.”

“For women,” Tane appended.

“The Kazah Core Worlds are renown for their female pleasure centers,” Sinive said.

“The question is, how the hell did we travel all the way to the Kazah Core Worlds?” Tane said. “While slipping through to another universe at the same time?”

“Did the archaeoceti unlock some new inter-dimensional travel ability inside of you that you don’t know about?” Sinive asked.

“Don’t think so,” Tane said.

Motion drew his attention to several… things… that were advancing through the haze that enveloped the streets below.

Sinive followed his gaze. “What are those?”

Tane squinted, using his chip to zoom in. As the entities came closer, they became visible through the thick haze, and he made out broad, eight-legged carapaces topped by sideways-oriented heads.

“Dwellers,” Tane said. “I count six of them. They aren’t wearing environmental suits. And there are no Dark spheres around them, so they’re probably not Amaranth. They all have energy launchers.”

“If this isn’t the Umbra, what the hell are dwellers doing here?” Sinive asked.

“My guess is, dwellers are duplicated in this mirror universe,” Tane said. “Along with human buildings.”

“But not humans themselves?” Sinive asked.

“I don’t see any humans except us…” Tane said.

A small flyer emerged from the mist overhead and crashed into the street a few blocks ahead of the dwellers. The flyer fell into a side street that was currently out of view of the dwellers.

Tane spotted two more figures emerging from the vehicle a moment later. They darted through the mist, moving away from the patrol as they hurried toward a building.

“Wait, I take that back,” Tane said. “These two look human.” He zoomed in.

Sinive stood on her tiptoes beside him. “I don’t see them. No wait.”

Tane stared in disbelief at what he saw. When the pair vanished inside the base of the distant building, he reverted the zoom to the standard level.

“I didn’t get a good fix,” Sinive said. “Were you able to confirm they were human?” She was still standing on her tiptoes, squinting her eyes to peer through the haze outside.

“They’re human all right,” Tane told her grimly. “Too human.”

“What are you talking about?” Sinive said. “What did you see?”

“They’re us.”

“What do you mean, us?” Sinive said.

“Exactly that,” Tane said. “I saw you and me down there.”

Sinive frowned. “How is that possible? We’ve traveled back in time?”

“No, I think this mirror universe has a time delay,” Tane said. “We’re on 57A. Watching our mad dash from the dwellers all over again.”

Sinive gulped. “Well that’s… no good.”

“No,” Tane agreed.

“Maybe if we lay low, the dwellers won’t find us.”

“There’s not much else we can do,” Tane said. “We’re completely defenseless. No weapons. No Essences. Not like the last time we were here.”

“Wait, I take back what I said,” Sinive told him. “We can’t lay low. At least not in the open like this. Because if we’re really repeating our flight from the dwellers on 57A, they’ll be conducting searches in all the nearby buildings. Looking for us.”

Tane exchanged an urgent glance with her. “They could be in this building right now.” He stared at the closed door nervously.

“If they discovered us, would they really act on what they found?” Sinive said. “Considering that we’re not really the Tane and Sinive they’re looking for.”

“Except they wouldn’t know that,” Tane said. “They’d have no idea this universe was separate from the one other dwellers know. This would be as real to them as it is to us and our duplicates. If they find us, I have no doubt they’ll capture us and treat us like the two they were chasing.”

“You’re right,” Sinive said.

“And now that we’ve arrived,” Tane continued. “There’s probably no guarantee the dwellers will follow the same course of action as they would have when they originally chased us. They’ll take different routes, make different decisions. Our very presence here will probably cause this mirror universe to diverge in different directions.”

“I knew we could wake up the Engineer inside you,” Sinive said.

“I’m not sure that’s the Engineer speaking,” Tane said. “But the theoretical physicist.”

“I didn’t know you had a theoretical physicist inside you,” Sinive said.

“You’d be surprised,” Tane said. “We’re going to need some weapons.” He moved to the patina-covered door. It was an old fashioned model with a knob.

He hesitated only a moment, then grabbed the handle and swung the door inward.

Beyond awaited a hazy red and black common area with cubicles walled off from one another by glass.

He stepped through the doorway.

A thick tentacle promptly wrapped around his body and he was pulled upward and to the side. He found himself face-to-face with a sideways-oriented head. Unlike dwellers in the real Umbra, this one was just as blurry as he was.

Another dweller rammed its tentacles into the office behind him and pulled out the kicking and screaming Sinive. It wrapped its tentacles tightly around her, easily subduing her.

A spider robot came forward. Tarkwail model.

The dweller held Tane toward the robot so that his head was at the same height as the robot’s.

Pincers on the Tarkwail parted, and a bright light flashed from inside the metal head, momentarily blinding him.

“They’re taking a brain scan,” Sinive said.

“I know,” Tane said as the afterimage from the light faded.

“They’re going to chip you,” Sinive said.

“I know!” Tane said.

“Well do something,” Sinive said.

He smiled weakly. There was nothing he could do. This was his nightmare scenario. Trapped in the Umbra, or a mirror version of it, surrounded by dwellers, and without access to any weapons, or Essences. He was completely helpless and at the mercy of the dwellers.

A panel opened up underneath the carapace and a telescoping limb emerged. At the tip was a sonic injector; underneath, a vial of reddish-yellow liquid was attached.

He searched frantically for the Essences, Dark or White, hoping that he had merely overlooked them, but there was nothing out there. He sought for the Emerald as well, but of course it wasn’t present either: he didn’t have the bone crown.

He was completely cut off from his powers.

The injector touched the side of his neck and he flinched at the intense sting.

His vision grew dark and he felt nauseous as the nanotech began to grow in his mind, sending out long tentacles of control into his various brain regions.

Yes, he was completely doomed.

21

Tane was vaguely aware as the robot went to Sinive and injected her as well.

Another Tarkwail approached Tane. The dweller that held him lifted Tane’s bowing head so that the robot could extend its pincers and perform another brain scan.

When the bright light of the scan faded, the robot turned toward what was ostensibly its superior, and issued a clacking sound.

Tane was feeling better then. Well enough to raise his head, anyway.

The big dweller who seemed to be in charge stepped forward. Words issued from a voice box hanging beneath its head.

“What is you name?” the dweller said. Each word seemed sourced from a different human speaker, replete with accent and gender. The words were distorted like Tane’s and Sinive’s had been, issuing on upper and lower octaves at the same time.

Tane expected to feel an overwhelming desire to please that dweller. Or at the very least an urge to obey. Instead he felt… nothing.

“What is your name?” the dweller repeated.

Still Tane did not respond.

“Who is your master?” the dweller pressed.

By then it became obvious that the chip hadn’t taken. He was still in control.

Someone had told him, maybe it was Sinive, that nanotech taken from the Umbra didn’t have any effect on the human brain. Which was why one couldn’t simply travel to the Umbra and pilfer nanotech in the hopes of enhancing one’s attributes for free. These dwellers had probably been using nanotech from a mirror human universe, which might be able to set in the twins of Tane and Sinive out there, but wouldn’t harm the real versions.

He received a text from Sinive. I was hoping it wouldn’t take.

You’re free, too?

I am, Sinive texted. I feel fine.

The lead dweller turned toward Sinive.

“What is your name?” the dweller said.

Sinive didn’t answer. At least, not right away. But then a moment later she said: “Sinive Rollingson.”

He got a text from her. I’m going to pretend it worked.

“Who is your master?” the dweller asked.

“You are,” Sinive replied.

The dweller repeated the questions to Tane. He ignored them.

Maybe you should pretend, too, Sinive texted.

Just wait, Tane replied. Look at them.

The dwellers were issuing incoherent clattering and shrieking sounds, and seemed to be arguing among themselves, as if they didn’t know what to do.

They finally quietened down, and the robot came up to Tane once more and produced another sonic injector.

Tane reached out with his mind again, searching for something, anything out there that he could grab on to. This was a mirror universe. It had to have some Essence available to him. He could Siphon Essences from all universes, after all. Or at least, he had been able to Siphon from every universe he had arrived in so far. True, one of those Essences required an esoteric form of bone to access. But still, seeing as this universe was a twin to the Umbra, there had to be a variant of the Dark he could touch. Out somewhere just beyond the edge of perception…

And then, finally, he found it. A mirror version of the Dark.

The flames of chaos erupted around him.

Those ethereal fires were weak, the flames moving sickly, and covered with dark patches as if weighed down by some inter-dimensional tar. But they would do.

He flinched as the sonic injector stung his neck.

He fought through the resultant drowsiness to create a work of Fingers of Ruin. He wasn’t sure the Dark timeline would take, but he had to try.

The Tarkwail flashed a light into his eyes to give him a brain scan, and then retreated to allow the lead dweller to question him anew.

“What is your name?” the dweller said.

Tane didn’t answer, trying to buy himself time to finish the work.

“What is your name?” it repeated.

“Tane… Ganeth,” Tane said as slowly as possible, enunciating each syllable as if it were its own sentence.

“And who is your master?” the dweller said.

“My master?” Tane asked.

“Yes,” the dweller replied.

“Why, my master is…”

Tane completed the mirror Dark timeline.

When he set the work in this reality, only two black fingers were available to him, since he didn’t have the level boosting effects of the Feral Necklace. He launched one of those smears at the tentacle that gripped him, and the other at the appendage belonging to the dweller that held Sinive beside him.

The lead alien released him as if stung. Sinive was dropped, too. The stricken limbs of either dweller cracked open, though the wounds were somewhat small, and definitely less than what the work would have produced in his own universe.

“Into the office!” Tane shouted at her.

He hurried inside after her and shut the door behind him. Sinive was already sliding a desk toward the door, so he dodged out of the way before it slammed into him.

The desk hit the door but immediately began to shake as the dwellers repeatedly pounded against the outside.

Tane climbed onto the desk with Sinive and reached up to shove at the removable ceiling panels. He slid one inward and aside, then grabbed onto the metal framework that had supported the panel and pulled himself into the overhead crawlspace. He reached down and helped Sinive up after him—he realized it would have been easier to let her go first instead, giving her a boost from below, but it was too late for that now.

When she was in, he replaced the ceiling panel and then began creating Night Vision so that he could see.

“Follow me,” Tane told Sinive as he felt his way forward, essentially low-crawling on hands and knees. He tried to keep most of his bodyweight on the metal framework that lined the removable ceiling panels, and hoped Sinive would do likewise, because he doubted the panels themselves would support their entire weight.

He completed Night Vision and the effect was weaker than what it would have been were he using the actual Dark, but his surroundings lit up enough for his needs. He could see the cramped duct-like compartment formed by the crawlspace, along with the conduits and translucent pipes overhead, allowing him to continue forward.

Sinive followed just behind him: because he had engaged location sharing, Sinive would see his outline overlaid on her vision, even if she could see little else in the dim light that penetrated the panel edges. Plus he would also appear on her overhead map.

He began another Fingers of Ruin timeline as he advanced. He heard a crash below and realized the dwellers had penetrated the room.

Behind him, tentacles began smashing into the ceiling one at a time as the dwellers realized where Tane and Sinive had gone. Those long appendages pierced through the paneled floor of the crawlspace like swords, leaving behind small holes that allowed javelins of light through.

He reached a bend in the crawlspace and took it immediately. A vent below showed that he was over an adjacent room.

He reached back, wrapped his hand around Sinive’s wrist, and forcibly hauled her around the bend to join him. Her leg caught on one of the panels below her, and moved it inward slightly. Tane finished hauling her away, and a moment later several tentacles smashed into the panel that she had moved.

Tane and Sinive hurried onward. The attacks ceased, at least for now, since they were completely above the adjacent room.

Tane remembered the small beetle robots the dwellers had used when he had taken the ventilation system to escape the intruders at his hydroponics farm, and he hoped the aliens didn’t employ something similar in this situation. Then again, they very probably would, so it was important to get out of the crawlspace as quickly as possible.

He hurried onward, reaching a T intersection. He took the side route, knowing it would lead above the central office area and the glass cubicles it contained.

He crawled forward for several tense moments, trying to make as little noise as possible. He cringed whenever the metal framework creaked underneath him or Sinive. He kept expecting a tentacle to ram into his midsection, impaling or capturing him. He wasn’t sure which option was worse.

He reached a vent, which gave him a view of the office area immediately below. The glass-walled cubicles were unoccupied. Beyond them, in the aisle that bordered the cubicles, he could see the dwellers moving between the different offices, ramming their tentacles into the ceiling panels as they searched for him and Sinive.

He removed the panel next to the vent and peered his head out to sweep the surrounding area. It was clear, but there was a chance one of the dwellers passing by inside the bordering aisle would spot him; he waited until the aliens flooded inside a conference room next to the offices, their tentacles rapidly javelining the ceiling, and when the coast was clear he lowered himself to the desk in the cubicle directly below. Sinive dropped down silently beside him.

They slid behind the desk, and made their way down the smaller aisle that led between the glass cubicles, moving away from the dwellers. They kept low, using the different desks for cover.

When they reached the far side of the room, where two doors led out of the shared office space, Tane spotted a pair of dwellers that had been left behind to guard, one on either side of the doors. They held energy launchers in their tentacles.

He would have liked to steal those weapons. But it wouldn’t have mattered: infuriatingly, the launchers were biometrically encoded to respond only to the dwellers that owned them. He learned that from past experiences.

“On three,” Tane said. “One. Two. Three.”

He and Sinive left cover and rushed the dwellers.

Tane finished his next Fingers of Ruin timeline and released the smears of unreality just as the creatures reacted. He directed one smear toward each of the sideways-oriented heads. He doubted it would be enough to kill either of them—even if he concentrated the attacks against one dweller, the works were too weak here. But he didn’t actually want to kill them: instead, he intended to merely distract them long enough for himself and Sinive to pass.

The works struck their heads and dark veins crawled up their faces; just as they brought their energy launchers to bear, the veins exploded into cracks, and the dwellers staggered in pain.

It was all Tane and Sinive needed to slip past. Tane threw himself at the double doors, and sensors caused them to swivel aside before he could even touch them.

He hurried into the hallway beyond, where a pair of elevator doors offered access to the different floors. He pressed the button. The power was working, but he didn’t have the patience to wait for the elevators, not while the dwellers could pursue them at any moment.

“Come on,” he said, and hurled himself into the stairwell door.

The two of them raced up the flights of stairs. Below, he heard a crash and he knew the dwellers, or perhaps their spider robots, were in pursuit.

At the top floor the door that led to the rooftop wouldn’t open.

“Let me try,” Sinive said.

She held a hand to the interface panel next to it, and a moment later the door clicked open.

“I’m surprised your hacking ability still works here,” Tane commented.

“I’m just that good,” Sinive said.

They burst outside. As expected, parked on the various rooftop platforms were flyers, theirs for the taking.

22

Tane and Sinive raced to the closest flyer.

“It’s not a Tambo, but it’ll do,” Sinive said. Tambo’s were exotic flyers, toys of the rich. There were certainly none on this rooftop.

Sinive hacked the locks and Tane piled into the passenger seat while she took the driver side—Tane had no flying vehicle skills. She ripped open a panel above the twin controls, overrode the drive mechanism, and grabbed the sticks to take manual control. She started up the engine, and then flew the vehicle off the rooftop and into the haze between the buildings. She dodged behind another building the first chance she could get, obviously wanting to put them out of the line of sight of the high-rise they’d just left.

“If everything taking place out here is happening at the same point in time as when we were fleeing the dwellers,” Tane said, “then there’s an alien ship somewhere above, hidden in the thick haze. So you don’t want to fly too high.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Sinive said. “Any ideas on how we’re going to get out of this mess, by the way?”

“We’re on 57A,” Tane said. “In a mirror universe of the Umbra. And we’ve essentially traveled back in time.”

“So what are you saying?” Sinive asked.

“Don’t you remember how we got back the last time we were trapped in the Umbra?” Tane replied. “There’s a triggerable lens here, placed by Tiberius. It will take us back to our own universe. Or at least, that’s my hope. I still have the location marked on my overhead map. I’m sending it to you now. We just have to hope we beat our duplicate selves to it.”

He sent the location to her chip via the remote interface, and she accepted.

“If we take this lens, won’t it just take us to whatever mirror universe our copies are from?” Sinive said. “And not our true universe?”

“I’m hoping the multiverse will sort things out,” Tane said. “The link we have to our own universe is stronger than any link we might have to the copy, after all.”

“The multiverse sorting things out...” Sinive said. “Seems like you’re putting a lot of faith in something that isn’t even conscious of its own existence.”

“Think about it,” Tane said. “Conscious or not, the universe will want to correct the mistake that was made. Two copies of ourselves aren’t supposed to exist at the same point in time. When we travel through the inter-dimensional gate, the multiverse will seek to fix the error. We have the strongest ties to our original universe. It’s the path of least resistance.”

“It’s great to keep your hopes up,” Sinive said. “But still just a theory. So what do we do if it doesn’t work, and end up in a copy of our universe?”

“Then we’re screwed,” Tane said. “But at least we’ll know right away when we arrive if we’ve reached our home universe. All we have to do is check the date.”

“Well, I agree that we essentially have nothing to lose,” Sinive said. “Hmm, wait. We might not have anything to lose, but our copies certainly do. I thought these triggerable lenses of yours could only be used once? If we use this one, then there won’t be a lens left for our copies. We’ll be trapping them here. Destroying any chance your twin has of ever returning to his own universe, and completing his own destiny.”

“Well it’s either that, or letting ourselves be trapped here,” Tane said. “If, when we take the lens, we find ourselves stuck in a weaker copy of our own universe, we can always relive our previous lives, but this time we’ll make sure we don’t make the same mistakes.” Like allowing you to die.

“What if this isn’t really a mirror universe after all?” Sinive said. “What if we’ve somehow managed to travel back in time, and this weird red haze that’s covering everything is the multiverse’s way of letting us know that. So by using that lens, and taking it away from our copies, we’ll be changing history. We’ll never have returned to our own universe, and you and I will wink out of existence entirely.”

“I don’t think so,” Tane said, though he couldn’t hide the uncertainty from his voice. They might have very well traveled back in time. “But I agree, it’s a risk either way.”

Sinive was quiet for a moment. Then: “It still bothers me that we’re trapping them here. Is there no other triggerable lens anywhere else on this moon? I thought you had a list of all their locations in your head, thanks to Tiberius.”

“I do,” Tane said. “And there isn’t another one on this moon. So we don’t really have a choice. We’ll just have to hope our counterparts find a way to survive. We always were resourceful.”

“Feels like I’m betraying myself somehow,” Sinive muttered. She tapped her thumbs on the control sticks for a moment. Then: “Hell with it.”

She dived the flyer to the west.

They came up fast to the target. Sinive set them down in a market square surrounded by close packed, blurry buildings. She knocked over a few kiosks and stalls with the downwash from the engines during the landing.

Tane got out and headed toward the oval-shaped blackness that floated above the center of the square. He began to see Dark threads emerging from his body for the first time, barely visible and leading toward that lens. He realized his doppleganger probably wouldn’t have been able to find the lens anyway, without those threads to guide the way. Unless of course the doppleganger could see the filaments far better than Tane had been able to in this mirror universe.

Tane continued to approach the infinite blackness with Sinive at his side.

“Damn I miss my pistol,” Sinive said. She was glancing to and fro, searching the square for signs of ambush.

The first time he had come here, dwellers had gathered to watch him touch the triggerable device. Apparently the aliens had decided not to show up this time, or at least they hadn’t yet arrived, as the perimeters of the square were clear of the creatures.

Tane reached the lens and extended a hand toward the iris that towered over him. His fingers began to distort. When he touched it, the blackness flowed up his fingers and started to envelop him. It burned where it touched.

Tane glanced at Sinive. “Hang on to me. I’m not sure the contained Essencework is as strong here.”

Sinive wrapped her arm around his waist without question. She kissed him as the darkness, and that burning heat, enveloped them both.

The world became dark around him, and Sinive was gone. He felt nothing, absolutely nothing at all, nor did he see, hear, or experience any other of his senses, and he understood what it was like to die then, given Sinive’s earlier description.

Time passed, and nothing further happened.

If he had been able to think and feel, he would have probably been filled with dread as it began to dawn on him that the mirror Essencework apparently wasn’t powerful enough to take him back to his own reality, and that all he had done was trap himself between universes. Essentially killing the two of them.

But then a white speck finally appeared, so very faint. He grabbed onto that speck for all he was worth, and it began to grow stronger, sucking him in. He felt another speck behind him, receding, and he grabbed onto it, knowing that if he let it go, he’d lose Sinive.

He felt his stomach turn, and realized he was falling.

The world snapped back and he slammed into the solar paneled pavement of the town square. Above, the sun shone down, free of the choking red haze.

Sinive was still wrapped around his side, in the same posture she had been in before they had traveled to this universe.

He checked the digital clock in the lower right of his vision. It was two A.M, according to the universal time—still midday on this world. And the date matched up with what Tane was expecting: it was the same day he had fallen asleep with Sinive in her quarters aboard the Mosaic. Less than an hour had passed.

They were back in their own universe after all. Or at least one that was nearly indistinguishable from it.

Sinive rested her head against his shoulder, and he simply held her and watched the people pass by. Some of them gave Tane and Sinive strange looks, but he ignored them.

They were free.

They couldn’t stay out in the open for long, however. If a city patrol came past and tagged their unblurred features, they would be arrested. And they had to take care to avoid cameras throughout the city, be it a camera in a delivery drone or a lamppost—the facial recognition AIs were linked to all of them.

“I feel the Essence again,” Sinive said.

“So do I,” Tane told her as he went to a nearby hat seller and purchased two big sombreros with his chip: one for himself, the other for Sinive. The seller had no actual inventory of course, but he printed them up immediately with his specialized 3D printer.

The hats were ludicrous, considering that no one else on 57A wore anything remotely resembling them, but Tane and Sinive could wear them low on their brow, and if they kept their heads bowed as they proceeded through the city, they’d avoid detection by any cameras. He still planned to give a wide berth to any patrols he spotted along the way. He wasn’t expecting the city to be in a heightened state of alert, since the TSN had no idea they were here.

Sure enough, they encountered no patrols as they made their way through the streets toward the closest rental apartment. Along the way, they changed their names via their ID Spoofing skills, just to be on the safe side.

Sinive hacked into the rental unit, and they shut the door behind them.

There was no automated assistant in the room, nor any cameras, so he finally felt a little at ease.

Tane went to the window and shut the curtains before taking off his hat. Then he peered through the edge of the curtain to watch the people below.

“It’s going to happen again, you know,” Tane said. “Eventually. We’ll wake up and find ourselves in another universe. And next time, there might not be a way to return.”

Behind him, Sinive didn’t answer.

“The archaeoceti woman was right,” Tane continued. “The boundaries between our universe and the others are definitely weakening. Look at them. All those people walking back and forth. Oblivious to the coming doom.”

Sinive slid her arm into the crook of his elbow, and gazed through the gap in the curtains toward the passers-by below. “The boundaries are weakening… what are the chances we would be the ones to experience that firsthand? The universe is a very big place, filled with countless galaxies, and yet, it just so happened to weaken around the two of us. Makes me wonder… are we the only ones who experienced this, or did a bunch of other people get sucked into alternate universes at the same time? We returned, but they…”

“They’d be trapped,” Tane finished for her. “I’m checking the Galnet news streams as we speak. As far as I can tell, there are no mass missing person reports, nor even any upticks in the number of people reported missing over the past twenty-four hours. There also haven’t been sightings of aliens or other strange creatures suddenly appearing on any of the colonies under the TSN’s dominion…”

“Maybe it’s too early, and the reports are just beginning to trickle in,” Sinive said.

“Maybe,” Tane agreed. “Of course, it could also be that the TSN is suppressing the news, but in this day and age, where everyone has a chip and potential recording device in his or her head, suppression on that level is difficult.”

“But it can be done,” Sinive said.

“Yes,” Tane said. “But I’m going to go with my gut on this: I believe that so far, it only happened to the two of us, and we two alone.”

“Why?” Sinive said.

Tane hesitated. He wasn’t sure he should tell her the reason.

Sinive bit her lower lip. “It’s because of who you are, isn’t it? If the boundaries between universes are weakening, it makes sense that you’re going to be the first one to experience the effects of that, seeing as you’re linked to them all, or at least three universes we know of. Well I guess four, counting the one we just left.”

Tane nodded. Her thinking was in line with his own. “Send a message to Gia and Nebb. Tell them what planet we’re on, and that we need a pick up.”

“Will do,” Sinive said. “And after they arrive, what are we doing next?”

“We head for the TSN headquarters,” Tane said. “It’s time to have a little meeting with the Paramount Leader.”

23

Tane and Sinive searched each other for signs of microcrillia or similar infections, but found nothing obvious, at least on the surface of their bodies. And while their chips reported everything seemed normal with their endocrine, cardiopulmonary and nervous systems, that wasn’t to say their organs or other subdermal tissues weren’t harboring something nasty. Once they were aboard the Mosaic, they planned to have full medical exams.

Naked full body examinations like that were quite a turn on, at least for Tane, so it wasn’t long before their exploratory sessions turned into a shared shower and love-making session.

They ordered food in, and spent the day together. And the night. It was a good break from the constant rushing around and running they had been doing for the past little while. And when they woke up again, they were thankfully still in their own universe.

Fifteen hours after their return to this universe, Nebb and Gia finally reported in via the Galnet. They had arrived at the planet in their respective vessels. Apparently their individual jumps had put them on different sides of the system, but they managed to reach the planet only fifteen minutes apart. Since Nebb had arrived first, he was the one who came to pick up Tane and Sinive.

As soon as the door opened, he gave Sinive a hug. “Good to see you, Girl.”

“And you as well,” Sinive said.

“I nearly had a heart attack when Gia told me her AI was reporting you two had flat-out vanished from your quarters,” Nebb said. “At first I thought you’d been sucked out into space by some deck breach… you know, a structural integrity failure, and so I swore up and down, telling Gia I knew the two of you should have stayed with me aboard the Red Grizzly. But she reassured me that the compartment you two shared was intact. I didn’t know what to think. I’m just glad you’re back.” He glanced at Tane. “So I guess the Whorl Bender has developed some entirely new means of interstellar travel. When are you going to teach me that little trick of yours?”

“Believe me, you don’t want anything to do with what happened to us,” Tane said.

Nebb gave him an appraising look, then shrugged. “You’re probably right.” He tossed two pouches onto the table. “Your storage pouches.”

Tane grabbed his, and secured it to his belt. He retrieved the blurring cap from inside and promptly slid it over his head.

Sinive did the same. “Well, at least these aren’t as conspicuous as the sombreros.”

Nebb glanced at the two big hats lying on the floor beside the beds. “You wore those out there? Ridiculous!” He went to one of the sombreros and kicked it. “If I saw you walking out there in one of these, I would have stopped you and issued a citizen’s arrest!”

Sinive glanced at Tane. “If you haven’t figured it out by now, Nebb can be a member of the fashion police.”

“Only for the most egregious violations,” Nebb said.

Tane regarded the smuggler’s trench coat with amusement.

Nebb glared at him. “What?”

“Nothing,” Tane said. That coat paired with the smuggler’s own wide-brimmed hat seemed to be a bit of a fashion faux pas in and of itself, but then again, what did Tane know? He was just an Outrimmer.

Tane glanced at Sinive. “I’m changing my ID again.”

“But we changed it after arriving,” Sinive said. After a brief pause, she added: “Actually, you’re right. Probably a good idea.”

He chose the name Erstwhile Tanner, while Sinive chose Reyna Phillips.

“Erstwhile Tanner, that one’s a bit obvious, isn’t it?” Sinive asked.

“No,” Tane said. “If I wanted to be obvious, I would have chosen Erstwhile Tane.”

“Close enough,” Sinive said, but she shrugged.

“All right, let’s get to the shipyard,” Nebb told them.

The smuggler walked to the entrance of the room along with Sinive. When Tane didn’t follow, Nebb turned around to give him a questioning look.

“Once I step out that door, there’s no going back,” Tane said.

“We can lay low here for a few days if you want,” Nebb said. “Or weeks, even.”

“No,” Tane said. “There’s no time. I don’t know if you’ve realized it or not yet, but what happened to Sinive and I wasn’t a natural thing. And it’s going to happen again. Not just to us, but others. I thought I could make my own destiny. I was wrong. It’s time to deal with whatever fate the universe has planned for me. I’ve been avoiding it long enough. I have to stop running, face it head on. ”

“Good man,” Nebb said. “We all could learn from your example. I just wish the rest of us had our destiny as clearly written out for us as yours is.”

“Oh, my destiny is far from clear,” Tane said. “I take it one day at a time.”

“As do we all,” Nebb commented.

Outside on the streets, Tane and Sinive kept their blurring caps pulled low. Nebb’s wide-brimmed hat apparently had a built-in blurring device as well, because he didn’t deviate from any of the obvious cameras they encountered along the way, such as the drone hovering above a crossroads. He did take a side street when a patrol of city guards came their way, just to be safe.

Nebb brought them to the closest shipyard and led them through customs. One of the officials seemed on the verge of detaining them, but a quick chip-to-chip credit transaction from Nebb had them on their way again.

“Gotta love it when they employ people instead of machines,” Nebb said as they took a gravalator to the top of the building. “You can’t bribe robots.”

“That’s not always true,” Sinive said.

Nebb pursed his lips. “I suppose not, at that.”

Tane thought they were referring to the AI of the Red Grizzly, whose personality was based off of a mind imprint taken from a human being. A heavily locked down imprint, but human nonetheless.

The smuggler directed Tane and Sinive to the hangar containing the Mosaic, and then departed to board the Red Grizzly, which waited on another launch pad nearby.

After Tane and Sinive boarded the Mosaic, the pair went straight to sickbay. The medical robots gave them a clean bill of health. There were no mirror universe microcrillia infections, nor any other types of infections in either of their systems.

“So when do we get to hear your plan?” Gia said over the comm band.

“As soon as we’re out of this system,” Tane said.

“Where do you want me to jump to, anyway?” Gia asked.

“Anywhere, as long as it’s away from here,” Tane replied. “Oh, and it should be a system where the TSN presence is minimal.”

“You got it,” Gia said. “Both ships are fully fueled and repaired. Chase and I have had a full night’s rest, seeing as it took eight hours for our ships to arrive after we jumped here. We can fly into orbit and open up distortion tunnels as soon as you give the word.”

“Good, take us to jump orbit whenever you’re ready,” Tane said. “Relay the order to Nebb.”

He closed the connection.

“So Chase is the new jump specialist aboard the Red Grizzly?” Sinive asked Tane. “I admit to feeling a little jealous. I don’t even really know him.”

“I plan on remedying that once we’re underway,” Tane said. “We’re all going to get to know each other very well. I want us to trust each other with our lives. Because we’re going to have to, for what I have planned.”

“Great,” Sinive said, the sarcasm obvious in her tone.

Tane and Sinive joined Gia in the cockpit as they neared jump orbit.

“I’ve detected an anomaly,” Muse announced.

“An anomaly?” Gia said. “What kind?”

“The system’s binary suns…” Muse said.

“What about them?” Tane commented.

“They’ve begun to disappear,” the Mosaic’s AI responded.

“Show me,” Gia said.

“Can I get access to that feed, too?” Tane asked Gia.

In moments the video feed appeared, displayed across the bulkhead in front of him. It was zoomed in on the binary stars. At this distance, they appeared as two dots, one red and one blue, set amid the countless other stars of deep space. Otherwise, nothing seemed out of the ordinary among them.

“Increase magnification two hundred percent,” Gia said.

The view changed, and now the stars were bigger, their brightness muted by the display to make their coronas more easily discernible. It looked like a very small portion was cut out of the right sides of either sun.

“Again,” Gia said.

The magnification amped up by another two hundred percent.

Tane could definitely see the cut-out areas now, obvious against the backdrop of space. He could also see an oval-like distortion among the stars just in front of each of the excised areas.

“What is that?” Gia said.

“I believe those are two massive distortion tunnels,” Muse said. “They exist stationary, relative to the stars: the suns are traveling inside on their own momentum.”

“Connect Gall, too,” Tane said. “And Nebb and Chase. I want them to see this.”

“They’re online,” Gia announced.

“What is it?” G’allanthamas said.

“Are you seeing these suns?” Tane asked.

“I am,” the alien said. “They’re… being swallowed. By the Z’Antamaraan.”

“Yes,” Tane said. He raised his voice for the benefit of everyone who was now on the comm. “You’re watching the destruction of this system. And the loss of over a billion people. The Z’Antamaraan are going to kill them all. When those suns are gone, the population won’t be able to evacuate in time to save themselves from the coming cold.”

“They’ll have to live in underground shelters to survive,” Muse agreed. “Existing on geothermal energy. But not all will die. I estimate the TSN will successfully evacuate two hundred million before the surviving colonists exhaust the last of their supplies and begin to succumb.”

“That’s still eight hundred million lives lost,” Tane said.

“The TSN won’t abandon them,” Sinive said. “They’ll arrange for new supplies until more ships can come.”

“Yes, but even then, there will be deaths,” Tane said.

“I estimate the final death toll will reside between two and five hundred million,” the Mosaic’s AI agreed.

“It was inevitable that the Z’Antamaraan would begin to take suns in human territories,” G’allanthamas said over the comm.

First, the boundaries between universes were weakening. And now this.

It was fairly obvious now that he could no longer keep delaying the inevitable. He would have to face the Z’Antamaraan. Sooner, rather than later. Perhaps even today.

“How long would it take to fly to the closest sun?” Tane asked.

“Approximately two days,” the Mosaic’s AI replied.

“And how long until the suns are swallowed up entirely?” Tane pressed.

“You want to try traveling through the distortion tunnels along with the suns?” Sinive said.

“I do,” Tane said.

“It will also take about two days for the suns to be devoured,” Muse said. “However, even if we are able to pass through in time, we’ll have to travel within the event horizon of one of the suns. Once we arrive on the other side of that distortion tunnel, we’ll be trapped in a decaying orbit around the star, and won’t be able to escape its gravity. We’ll have to jump right away.”

“Then we’ll jump right away,” Tane said. “Gia, have Muse set a course for the closest sun.”

“There is no guarantee we’ll arrive in time,” Muse said.

“Gia?” Tane pressed.

“Set a course, Muse,” Gia told the AI.

Tane disconnected G’allanthamas and the others. He lay back against the bulkhead and stared at the video feed.

“Again the archaeoceti were right,” Tane mused. “The Z’Antamaraan are accelerating their pace.”

“It’s the end of the galaxy?” Gia said.

“Not just the galaxy,” Tane said. “The entire universe.”

Tane returned to the quarters he shared with Sinive and rested on the bunk. Three hours later he received a call from Muse.

“The tunnel is closing up faster than I initially calculated,” Muse said. “We’ll arrive six hours too late.”

“What are the chances the distortion tunnel will remain open six hours after the suns are gone?” Tane asked.

“Extremely low, I would say,” Muse told him. “Given how much energy—or Essence—it must take to maintain a distortion tunnel of that size.”

“What kind of creatures could master such an amount of Essence?” Tane wondered aloud.

“I don’t think I’d like to ever meet them,” Muse said.

“Too bad it’s my doom to do so,” Tane told the AI. “And by association, you’ll probably meet them, too.”

“Wonderful news,” Muse commented.

Sinive arrived and she sat down beside him.

“Muse, have Gia stand down,” Tane said. “Jump us out of here whenever you’re ready. Choose the closest system with the smallest TSN presence. Send the order along to Nebb. And as usual, change our heat signatures mid-jump.”

“Will do,” Muse said, and disconnected.

Sinive slid her hand under his.

“Feeling guilty?” Sinive asked him.

“A little,” Tane said.

“You can’t save everyone,” Sinive said. “That was never your destiny.”

“I wish I knew what it was,” Tane said. “It’s so vague. Face the creodenti. Then face the Z’Antamaraan. Whatever that means.”

She placed her other hand on top of his, and rubbed his knuckles. “We’ll figure it out together.”

The deck began to shake slightly, and he heard a gentle, rising hum.

Tane felt suddenly nauseous, and he tilted to the side, leaning against Sinive. She momentarily paled as well.

The feeling passed, and the hum faded. The deck stopped shaking.

“Guess we just jumped,” Tane said.

“Uh huh,” Sinive told him.

Tane received a call from G’allanthamas. He accepted, and conferenced in Sinive.

“You decided not to head toward the distortion tunnel?” the alien asked from his cramped domain in the cargo bay.

“Well, the situation decided for me,” Tane said. “We would’ve arrived six hours too late.”

“You know, it’s probably for the best,” Sinive said. “I don’t think you were ready to face them.”

“You’re starting to sound like Lyra and Jed,” Tane said.

“Well, it’s true,” Sinive told him.

Tane considered that for a moment. “Of course I’m not ready. Just as I’m not ready to face the Paramount Leader. But I have to try on both accounts. We’ve run out of time.”

“The Doomwielder is correct,” G’allanthamas said. “He won’t ever be ready. Even if he reaches level seven in all his Essence abilities. At some point, His Woman, you will have to let the Doomwielder fulfill his destiny.”

“I guess I’m afraid I’ll lose him,” Sinive said.

“We’re all afraid of that…” G’allanthamas said.

“And wait a second, did you just call me His Woman?” Sinive said.

“Yes,” the dweller said.

“Uh, you know my name is Sinive, right?” she said.

“Whatever you say, His Woman,” G’allanthamas said.

“How would you like it if I called you His Alien,” Sinive said.

“That would suit me just fine,” the dweller said.

“A-hole,” Sinive said.

“I’ve never understood your penchant for calling everyone an a-hole,” G’allanthamas said.

“I have,” Tane said. “She only does it for people—or aliens—who deserve it.”

“Thank you,” Sinive said. “I was wondering when you’d stand up for me.”

“Well, I usually figure you can stand up well enough for yourself,” Tane said.

“I suppose I can, at that,” Sinive said. She kissed him on the cheek.

“What was that for?” Tane asked.

“I don’t know,” Sinive said. “Believing in me?”

“Are you two going to mate now?” G’allanthamas asked.

Sinive pulled away and told Tane: “Did you enable video sharing or something?”

“No,” Tane said. “He can’t see us.”

“I heard the slurping sounds of that disgusting habit you humans call ‘kissing,’” G’allanthamas explained. “So I guessed you were going to mate.”

“Well, we just might, at that,” Sinive said, smiling wryly at Tane.

“Do you mind if I watch?” G’allanthamas said.

“What?” Sinive said. “No!”

“It would be interesting, from an anthropological perspective,” G’allanthamas said. “I haven’t watched humans rut in a long time. The last time was when I secretly planted a camera in the quarters of Tiberius, and—”

“Great, your alien friend is a pervert,” Sinive said. “Do we have to worry about hidden cameras somewhere in our quarters now?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Tane said. “He can’t fit in the hallways. He’s confined to the cargo bay.”

“But he could have tricked the maintenance robot into installing one…” Sinive said.

“I think I’ll let you go now, Gall,” Tane said. “Before you get yourself into more trouble.”

“I’m in trouble?” the dweller said.

“Bye for now,” Tane said, disconnecting.

Sinive kissed him on the lips. “Well if he is watching, let’s give him the show of the century.”

“Maybe we should record it ourselves, just to be sure,” Tane suggested.

“I always knew you were an exhibitionist.” Sinive lowered the straps of her dress, and shoved it down to her hips. She removed her bra and her breasts jiggled enticingly.

“Only with you,” Tane said, mashing his lips against hers.

24

The two ships had arrived in the destination system in different locations, and took some time to join up. They were in the Baith system, located in the Albedo Lattice, a series of TSN colonies on the border between the TSN and Mautauraen territories.

Tane arranged a virtual meeting between the crews when the ships were close enough so that the comm lag between them was three seconds: good enough for his purposes.

Tane held the meeting in the tiny compartment where they had their meals: the wardroom. Gia and Sinive were present in person, while Tane’s chip generated augmented reality holograms for Nebb, Chase and Positron, who were aboard the Red Grizzly, and G’allanthamas, who, while aboard the Mosaic, was restricted to the cargo bay. Only the disembodied, sideways-oriented head of the alien was visible, along with the glass dome of the environmental suit he wore, floating at the center of the table.

Gia was showing signs of weariness from her latest jump: she sat slightly slumped at the table, with her face waxen, and her eyes harboring heavy bags underneath. Meanwhile Chase seemed entirely unaffected from his most recent jump, and sat straight upright, his features flush with energy—the wonders of digital avatars. He was very likely just as exhausted on his end.

“According to open source intel I found on the Galnet,” Tane began. “The Paramount Leader keeps a vacation palace on the luxury world of Timerus. He frequents it two or three times a year, and he’s always there for the week long Festival of Debauchery.”

“Sounds like my kind of festival,” Nebb said.

“You’re in luck, because the festival is in its third day,” Tane said. “And the Paramount Leader has been spotted at his palace.”

“So we’re going to Timerus.” Gia said.

“We are,” Tane said.

“Security around the main palace is going to be intense,” Chase said. “They’re going to have Mancers, Essence warriors, mechs, you name it.”

“I’d expect no less,” Tane said. He went ahead and explained the plan he had come up with.

“It’s not going to work,” Chase said. “We’re five men and women, one robot, and an alien, against an entire army.”

“But we have the Doomwielder on our side,” G’allanthamas said. “Our odds are even, I’d say. Maybe even skewed a little against our foe.”

“We’re going to need you to give us a breakdown of the expected troops and their deployments of course,” Tane told Chase. “Sinive has given me her own thoughts on the matter, but her navy days were a few years ago. And she was never in the infantry.”

“I’ll tell you whatever I can,” Chase said.

“Wait a second, I have a question,” Gia said. “You’re doing this because the archaeoceti told you the Paramount Leader could bring you to the creodenti, right? But what if he can’t?”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take,” Tane said. “Because to be honest, this needs to be done. I can’t always be looking over my shoulder, wondering when the TSN will strike next. It’s time to take the battle to the enemy, for once. Plus, I need him in my pocket if I’m ever to unite humans and dwellers.” Tane hesitated, and then: “Send the transmission. Tell the Paramount Leader I’ve agreed to surrender to him directly.”

* * *

Tane was waiting for Nebb, Positron and Chase to board the Mosaic. He had decided that the team only needed one ship to do this. The Red Grizzly would remain behind, awaiting further orders. Once they were aboard, Sinive would make the jump to the next system, and then she would join Chase and Gia in recovery. Once Gia had sufficient stamina, she would jump them to the final system, and they would proceed to the pleasure world, Timerus.

He stared at his inbox. Earlier he had received a message from his parents, but had been putting off answering it. Now was as good a time as any.

He viewed the message once more. His parents appeared before him, in front of the bulkhead, their faces full of concern. Their lower halves blended in with the wall, as the recording hadn’t covered that portion of their bodies. He had the impression they were sitting on the bed of a hotel room.

“Tane, we hope you’re well,” Mom said. “We got your message the same day we saw what happened on Xalantas. Please tell us that wasn’t you. It can’t be you.”

“But if it is, Son, we want you to know, we love you,” Dad said. “No matter what happens, we’ll always be here for you. Come home to Galtede Serpentis, Son. Leave all of that behind. You don’t need to be the World Bender or whatever it is they think you are. You can still come back here and live an ordinary life. It’s not too late.”

“We’ll be waiting for you,” Mom said. “When you’re back, we can visit Xaltog’s Restaurant in town, like we used to do. And when we come home, I’ll make your favorite cookies. White chocolate chip. Your friends want to see you. Greg. Jenna. We all miss you.” She forced a grin. “Come home.”

With that, the message ended.

Tane smiled wanly. “Begin recording.” He cleared his throat. “Mom, Dad. It’s too late. I can’t go back, not now. I am the World Bender. I realize that now. The galaxy… the universe itself, is falling apart. Stars are disappearing. Boundaries are thinning. You’re going to start hearing reports of people disappearing and of monsters returning in their places, if you haven’t already.

“I’ve heard the call, and I’ve done my best to avoid answering it, but the time has come to take up arms. I’m going to face the Paramount Leader, Dad, Mom. I’m going to do something, risk everything, because I’ve run out of time. The universe has run out of time.

“After that, I’ll make a visit to the realm of the dwellers, and then I’m headed to the galactic core. I don’t know if I’ll save the galaxy, or further its demise. I don’t know if I’ll live, or I’ll die. But I do know I’ll always love you, and I’ll never forget what you’ve done for me. You raised me into the man I am today. I’ve told you that before, I know, but it’s true. Though I admit, I was a bit of a self-absorbed, narcissistic kid at times. I can see that now. Leaving Galtede Serpentis has certainly opened my eyes. Sure, I might be the World Bender, but that doesn’t mean the universe revolves around me. Then again, maybe it does, in a way.

“Whatever the case, I’ll do my part, play my hand, and when next we meet, if it’s in the flesh, you’ll know the universe has been saved. And if not…”

Tane ended the message on that note, and sent it.

* * *

Sinive made the jump to the next system, and they were waiting on Gia to recover for the final jump to the system containing the pleasure world, Timerus.

After Sinive had rested for two hours, Tane called everyone to assemble in the wardroom. As usual, G’allanthamas attended virtually from the cargo bay, his head alone visible on their augmented reality displays.

“I told Sinive that we’d need to get to know one another very well for what was coming,” Tane said. “That we’d have to trust each other absolutely.”

“So what, we’re here to bond, is that it?” Nebb said.

“Mostly,” Tane said. “This is one of our last chances to relax and hang out with each other before Timerus. What happens down on that planet isn’t going to be easy. Not for any of us. More than one of us could die. Maybe all of us. The faces you see sitting here? Some of them might not be present when we return.”

“But you can Revive us?” Nebb pressed.

“Assuming there’s a body,” Tane said. “And that I survive, or don’t come out of this chipped by the TSN.”

“That’s a lot of assumptions,” Nebb said.

“It is,” Tane agreed. “Which is why I want to know why each and every one of you is here. You’ve all had multiple opportunities to turn back by now, and yet you remained by my side through it all. I want to know why. We’ll go around the table. Starting with Gia.”

“I hate doing stuff like this,” Gia said.

“I’m sure we all do,” Tane said.

“Maybe it’ll be easier if we start with our history?” Muse suggested.

Tane glanced upward. “And there the AI goes, interfering already.”

“No, it’s a good idea,” Chase said.

Gia sighed. “Well, you all know I’m a corrector. Or used to be, until our World Bender friend here showed up. I originally trained to be a law enforcement officer.” She sighed. “That didn’t work out too well. Me and a fixed schedule, well, let’s just say we don’t get along. I was minding my own business in the mall one day, doing what I did best at the time: shopping. And then out of nowhere a servant robot began attacking people. First its owner, and then anyone who happened to walk by. Not with weapons, mind you—its bare hands. About five people were unconscious with broken jaws before I got to it. I found out I was good at beating up robots. Someone gave me a card, said I should do it full time. And that’s how I started down the corrector path.”

“So why are you here?” Tane said. “I know you’re fond of Jed, or used to be. But he’s gone now. Why stick around?”

“I don’t know,” Gia said. “I guess I just want to feel like I’m a part of something bigger than myself. And if it’s true that you’re really the World Bender, and going to save the universe, that’d certainly qualify.”

“You don’t think I am?” Tane pressed. “After everything you’ve seen?”

“I’m not really sure yet, no,” Gia said. “I mean, I know you’re the World Bender, but are you really the Bender of Worlds? I’m not sure if you get what I mean.”

“I think I do,” Tane said. “I call myself the World Bender, and I have his abilities, but will I do the right thing when it comes to it. Will I save this galaxy, and all the other galaxies in this universe? Or destroy them?”

“Yeah, that’s right,” Gia said.

Tane glanced at Positron. “So how about you?”

“I’m here because I follow Nebb,” the scepter robot said.

“Fair enough,” Tane told Positron.

“I must admit,” Positron said. “Grudgingly so, that I’m impressed with how much you’ve grown since I first met you. I’m not talking so much in your abilities and powers, but as a person. I didn’t like you at all when we met. I thought you were wishy washy, talked too much, made redundant comments about everything. And you acted like you were an equal to myself, to Nebb, and even the Volurs. No, I was not impressed. But you’ve been humbled, many times over, since then. Risking everything to save those closest to you, wearing your heart on your sleeve, and even displaying self-sacrifice. Yes, I have grown to respect, even admire you. And the sheer valor you have exhibited in the face of insurmountable odds, all I can say is, some of the things you have done... I can’t decide whether you’re courageous or insane. Or a mixture of the two.”

“Probably a mixture,” Tane said. He was beaming. “And thank you, very much, my robot friend, for the vote of confidence.”

“Yes, well, don’t let it get to your head,” Positron said. “I wouldn’t exactly call you a friend. Not yet. I may respect you to a degree, but I still plan to shoot you in the back one day.”

Tane frowned.

Beside him, Sinive laughed out loud. “Oh Positron, I love you.” She glanced at Tane. “He’s kidding, you know that, right?”

“Am I?” Positron said. His visor animated as his eyebrows formed an inverted V.

“How did you end up on Nebb’s team?” Gia asked the robot.

“There’s no big story there,” Positron said. “He purchased the original, pre-backup me straight out of a shop. When I was turned on, I was aboard the Red Grizzly.”

“I’m often turned on there, too,” Sinive said with a giggle. “Sorry, I have a dirty mind.”

Tane suppressed a smile, and glanced at Nebb. “Why are you here?”

The smuggler looked at Sinive. “For her. For you. For myself.”

“That’s it?” Tane said.

“We’ve talked before,” Nebb said. “You know my secrets.”

Tane nodded slowly. “I suppose I do.” Killing one’s previous apprentice was definitely a secret that was probably best kept bottled up.

“Chase?” Tane said.

The Mancer’s face darkened, and he gazed off into the distance. “I lost my platoon on Sigma 231. My friends. We were called the Darkslayers.”

“That’s terrible,” Sinive said. “What happened?”

“We were hunting you down,” Chase said. “My CO ordered the Darkslayers ahead of you guys in Durahepte City, where intel suggested you might flee. Turns out, you didn’t flee there. And instead, we found ourselves surrounded by kraals. We begged for reinforcements, but none came. What happened next wasn’t pretty. By the time help finally came, I was the last man standing. Covered in the blood of my forsaken brothers and sisters.”

“I’m sorry,” Tane said.

“Yeah,” Chase continued. “At first, when you planned to revive Sinive, I harbored a small hope that you would do the same with my Darkslayers if I was loyal enough to you, and proved I was worthy enough of your favor. I imagined them fighting at your side, restored from the great beyond. But after the fight we went through in the swamp, almost dying ourselves to save her, I realized it wasn’t worth it. What’s the point of reviving a person if there’s a good chance you’ll kill someone else in your party, or yourself, in the process? Plus I didn’t have their bodies. By now their bones will be distributed throughout Durahepte in the Umbra, buried in kraal guano.

“So anyway, as you can guess, I don’t owe the TSN a thing. I’d rather be here, fighting for you, than for them. The TSN should be trying to ally with you, not trying to destroy you, especially considering you’re the only one who can save us all. But it’s the Paramount Leader’s fault. The TSN is a great organization, but we’re rotten at the top. The everyday men and women, the rank and file of the navy, they’re good people. Well, most of them. Excepting my CO. But I wanted to ask you if you could show some mercy to those rank and file. Maybe not kill so many this time.”

“I won’t,” Tane said. “Because I’m not going to lose it, not like on Xalantas. What happened there won’t happen again.”

“Unless...” Nebb glanced at Sinive.

The unsaid words echoed loudly among them all.

Unless you lose her again. Permanently.

25

“How did you end up in the TSN?” Tane asked Chase quickly, wanting to steer the topic toward something more comfortable.

I expect them to be uncomfortable, and yet I can’t face discomfort myself. I haven’t grown all that much after all, Positron.

“Oh, the usual way,” Chase replied. “I tested positive for the Essence when I was young, and I knew from an early age I wasn’t strong enough to be a Volur. The TSN drafted me when I was eighteen, and I chose the path of the ranged Mancer. I’ve been in the military for three years now. I had five more to go, until I deserted. I wonder what they’ll do to me if they capture me alive...”

“Big Chicken Dinner,” Sinive said.

“With jail time,” Nebb added.

Tane’s chip told him Sinive was actually referring to a Bad Conduct Discharge. Definitely not what any military personnel would ever aspire to.

“Gall, how about you?” Tane said.

“I’m here because I’m your friend,” G’allanthamas said. “I recognized early on that you needed much guidance, and I knew you’d be lost without me. Just like Tiberius. He was so young. So naive. I remember, back when I was chasing my brood mate, seeing Tiberius for the first time. Here was this man walking among my people. This human, wearing his spacesuit, somehow having found his way to our universe. It expanded my mind, made me realize that ours wasn’t the only universe out there. I promptly launched myself at him and carried him away, announcing to everyone else that I was going to eat him, and I’d let them know how he tasted. It was a trick, of course. I took Tiberius to the mountains, and so there I began his training, along with others. He began amassing followers, and the rest, as they say, is history.”

“What history?” Tane said. “I don’t know anything about his history...”

“We toured different planets, came up with new Essenceworks,” G’allanthamas said. “Then returned to Tiberius’ universe, and lived with him until the rest of his days. When he died, we returned. And then I went into hibernation with my brood mate, waiting for your arrival.”

Tane glanced at Sinive.

“You already know why I’m here,” she told him.

He nodded. “I trust you the most, out of anyone.”

“Hey!” G’allanthamas said. “Bros before hoes!”

“Sorry,” Tane said. “Not this time.”

“Where does he even come up with this stuff?” Sinive asked.

“He considers himself an anthropologist of humanity, remember?” Tane replied.

“Yeah, a weird one,” Sinive said.

“I don’t think this ‘bonding’ of yours is really working,” G’allanthamas said. “I don’t feel my trust levels growing beyond what they were before, not with any of you. But I have an idea!”

“Great, just what we need, an alien idea to help us bond,” Sinive said.

“We have this game we play among the elite of my kind,” G’allanthamas continued excitedly. “Perhaps it would be appropriate here. Let me tell you how it works. Every person takes a turn. When your turn comes, you pick another person, any person, and ask them, ‘truth or command.’ If they say ‘truth,’ they have to answer any question you pose truthfully. If they say ‘command,’ you can tell them to do something. The more embarrassing, the better!”

“We humans have that game, too,” Sinive said. “It’s called Truth or Dare. It’s something kids play. Or adolescents. This is silly. I’m out.”

Gia pursed her lips. “I’ll play it.”

“So will I,” Nebb said.

“That’s right, team up against me, would you?” Sinive said.

“Everyone for Gall’s game, say aye,” Tane commented.

A chorus of ayes filled the room. Sinive remained quiet.

“That’s loyalty for you.” She folded her arms. “A robot, an alien, and five humans playing Truth or Dare? No thanks.”

“Come on,” Chase told her. “It could be fun. Like Tane said, this could be the last time all of us are in the same room together again.”

Sinive held up her nose and sniffed in disdain. But she remained in her seat, and the fact she hadn’t yet left told Tane she was at least partially open to the game.

“I’ll start first,” G’allanthamas said. “Sinive, truth or command?”

“I told you I’m not playing,” Sinive said.

“Truth or command?” the dweller pressed.

Sinive rolled her eyes. “Fine. Truth. And it better not be something too personal, or I’m not answering.”

“Have you ever eaten a booger?” G’allanthamas said.

Sinive’s face curled up in disdain. “Like when I was five, maybe. What kind of a question is that? Are we three year olds, or something?” She looked at Tane. “I told you this game is for kids. Not adults.” She got up.

“I thought it was an amusing question,” G’allanthamas said.

“All right, Nebb, you’re next,” Tane said quickly.

Nebb looked right at Tane. “Truth or command?”

Tane was aware of Sinive lingering by the wardroom entrance to listen.

“Truth,” Tane said.

“When did you know you had fallen for Sinive?” Nebb said.

“Probably the very first time I met her, actually,” Tane said, glancing her way. “I remember thinking how beautiful she was in her flowing white dress. Like no one else I’d ever seen. My heart sped up when she looked my way and smiled the first time. Her cheeks dimpled when she grinned, you see, and the corners of hers eyes crinkled so adorably. I knew then that I wanted to be with her and no one else.”

She smiled brightly, living up to her dimpled cheeks and crinkling eyes.

“Truth or command,” Gia said to G’allanthamas.

“Command!” the dweller said.

“Hmm,” Gia said. “Shoot. And I was prepped with a pretty good question. Okay. Command. Talk to Sinive like she’s your brood mate.”

“But I already do,” G’allanthamas said. He glanced at Sinive, but before he could say anything, she rolled her eyes and left.

“Ouch, that’s gotta hurt,” Nebb said. “The rejection.”

“Actually, it’s kind of preferable,” G’allanthamas said. “You wouldn’t want to to hear me talking to my brood mate.”

“Chase, truth or command?” Tane told the Mancer.

“Truth,” Chase said.

“When you were in the military, did you ever sleep with someone you weren’t supposed to?” Tane said.

“You mean like fraternization?” Chase said.

“Yeah, I guess,” Tane said.

“I did, actually,” Chase said. “In my first year, shortly after I graduated from boot camp. It was someone in my own unit.”

“I didn’t know the military allowed fraternization between men and women in the same unit,” Gia said.

“They don’t,” Chase said. “We kept it a secret. We were very good at hiding our feelings. We only hooked up on leave. She eventually got a promotion and I never saw her again. Probably for the best really, given what eventually happened to the Darkslayers.”

Chase glanced at Positron. “Truth or command?”

“I believe I will abstain from participating,” the robot said.

“Come on,” Chase said.

Positron hesitated, then: “Truth.”

“Have you ever had sex with a human?” Chase asked.

“I have, in fact,” Positron replied. “It was in a bar on Septa Prime.”

“Oh! I was there!” Nebb said.

“Yes, it was quite the interesting bar,” Positron said. “Apparently the women on Septa Prime have never seen a robot like me before—robots cast in the shape of humans are forbidden there. One thing led to another, and, well, soon she was back in my room, testing out how anatomically correct I was.”

“Nice...!” Chase said.

“Whorl Bender,” Nebb said. “If you had to choose between dating someone ugly yet good in bed, or someone hot and terrible in bed, who would you pick?”

“But you didn’t ask truth or command,” Tane said.

“Yeah, I’m skipping straight to truth,” Nebb said. “So which is it?”

“Someone hot of course,” Tane said. “If you can’t get it up, it doesn’t help if she’s good in bed now, does it?”

Chase laughed.

Tane glanced nervously at the entrance. It was empty. “I’m just glad Sinive wasn’t around to hear that.”

“Actually, I heard every word,” Sinive said over the comm.

“Muse!” Tane said.

“I thought you knew she was listening,” Muse said.

“It’s not like you said anything bad about her...” Chase commented.

“Yes,” Positron said. “In fact, you sort of complimented her.”

“Actually no, he only revealed how shallow he really is,” Sinive said.

“Thanks...” Tane said.

“It wasn’t a compliment,” Sinive said.

“I don’t understand,” G’allanthamas said. “This game was suppose to be about bonding, but all of your questions are quickly devolving, and becoming entirely sexual in nature.”

“What did you expect?” Gia said. “We’re adults. We’re going to ask adult questions. Probably a lot of them sexual. And besides, I’m the only women present. With all the testosterone we have running around the room, you can’t expect sex not to be at the forefront of the conversation?”

And so they went back and forth like that, trading jibes and insults while bonding—at least somewhat—with one another.

The game ended shortly after Gia got a question from Nebb.

“How did you meet Jed?” the smuggler asked.

Gia’s face saddened. She didn’t answer. Not at first. Then: “I was called to correct a robot on an outpost near the outskirts of explored space. When I arrived, the retirees who lived at the outpost told me the robot had escaped the colony, and was roving at large somewhere on the moon. I followed the trail. Eventually, it led back to the outpost itself.

“When I returned, I found the retirees dead. I was too late. I found someone still among them, not a robot—but a man. Lying on the floor, covered in blood. He was badly injured. I took him aboard my ship, nursed him back to health. When he was well enough, I asked him about the robot that had attacked the outpost and killed everyone. Asked if he knew where it had gone.

“He told me that it hadn’t gone anywhere. That he was the one who had killed those retirees. I told him that was impossible, because I was called in specifically to hunt a robot. That he must have been delusional, because of his injuries. ‘No,’ he said. ‘The slavers hired you because you were the closest. They would have told you anything to get you to come here and save them.’ You see, these weren’t ordinary retirees, but slavers. The very same people who had raised Jed as a slave and sold him into servitude. They were enjoying the fruits of their labor, of their blood money. Lyra had bought Jed and set him free, and he had returned to the slavers to rectify his sale.”

Gia sat back and gazed at Nebb wanly. “That’s how I met Jed.”

A quietude descended around the table.

“You miss him, don’t you?” Tane said.

“More than anything,” Gia said. “He knows I care about him. It’s why he left, I think. He’s afraid.”

“Of what, commitment?” Tane said.

“No,” Gia said. “If he was afraid of commitment, he wouldn’t be following that Volur witch around. He’s afraid he’ll hurt me again.”

Tane was about to ask why, but decided he had pressed her enough. If she wanted to talk more, she would. If not, then that was fine as well.

“We were a couple, you see,” Gia said. “After I nursed him back to health. We toured the galaxy together, hunting down robots side by side during the day, and having sex all night. He started to act strange, after I bought him his first nanotech upgrade. Distant. As the months passed, he only became more distant. Then he finally showed me his test results, after his brain scan from the first upgrade. He tested positive for Essence use. And his skill was high. Enough to be a Volur. He told me he had to make a choice. Become a Volur, or stay with me, on the run until the TSN captured him and conscripted him into their armies. I told him I wasn’t going to stand in the way of his future. And so he left. And I didn’t see him again until you came to me for a ride.”

“I didn’t know that,” Tane said. “Thank you for sharing.” He paused. “You know, I’ve been thinking. I’ve already risked all of your lives, many times over. Maybe this is a bad idea. Maybe you shouldn’t be coming with me.”

“We have to come,” Chase said. “Haven’t you been listening to anything we’ve been telling you? Your path is our path, now.”

“If any of you die, I’ll bring you back, I swear I will,” Tane said. “No matter the cost.” He glanced up, toward the ceiling intercom. “But what about you, Sinive? I’ve already lost you once. If I lose you again, you’re gone forever.”

“You won’t lose me,” Sinive replied. “And of course I’m coming.”

Tane dissolved the bonding session after that. When he left the wardroom, he was seriously considering running away, if only to avoid putting Sinive in danger. But it wasn’t like he could just hop into a shuttle and hope to outrun the ship. Nor could he take over, not when the AI was running things and he had no hacking skills. He resigned himself to the fact that Sinive was coming. And he would just have to do whatever he could to protect her. And as for the others, he intended to live up to his promise. He’d Revive anyone who died, assuming the body wasn’t entirely obliterated. He just hoped it didn’t come to that.

Because he wasn’t sure he’d be able to endure yet another Revive ritual, and the life-and-death struggle it entailed.

* * *

Tane dismantled the table in the wardroom and cleared it out to serve as a training area during the final leg of the journey. He practiced with his Dark and White beam hilts, allowing only a small amount of Essence to flow into each so that the blades didn’t reach the overheads or bulkheads. He didn’t level at all in either beam hilt control skill, which wasn’t entirely unexpected, given that he wasn’t practicing with a real opponent. He could’ve had Positron download a sword or ax routine, and then practiced with some substitute, like a stick, but then he’d merely level in stick fighting.

In the end he decided to store the Dark beam hilt in his pouch indefinitely. One day he’d have to download the muscle memory necessary to operate two hilts at once, if he could find a Peddler of the Esoteric who would sell it to him. And if he could afford it. Until then, the weapon simply wasn’t of much use to him, especially considering how much higher in level his White beam hilt control was.

The Mosaic jumped to the final system.

The expected TSN warships arrived to escort them to Timerus. When they entered orbit above the planet, smaller atmosphere-capable transports escorted them down to the surface, where the Mosaic would land in the capital.

Tane accessed the external nose camera with Gia’s approval and watched the entire approach. He could see the buildings of the capital city from afar. For a luxury world, those buildings were certainly tall and industrial looking. Skyscrapers consumed most of the landscape.

As the Mosaic neared the city, his attention was drawn to the countless arrays of armored carriers and other defenses that ringed the perimeter wall. In moments the Mosaic flew past that perimeter and the skyscrapers were directly below, with flyers in designated lanes moving between the tall buildings. Those airborne vehicles were surprisingly sparse, as was the street traffic—Tane suspected the city had banned all except essential vehicles from the skylanes and roadways in preparation for his arrival. He had to remind himself how very afraid of him the TSN was.

If the Festival of Debauchery was in full swing, he saw no hints of it. Perhaps the partying was confined to the evening hours, or restricted to designated locations inside the different skyscrapers, out of view of the general public—that would make some sense, given how risqué some of those parties were supposed to be, based upon what he had read about the whole affair over the Galnet.

But what he did see was the continued military presence. He spotted mechs and combat robots on every street corner. Armed drones and gunships roved the skylanes. Mancers and Essence warriors stood watch on the rooftops. Missile vehicles parked in different side streets, huge rockets harbored in their trailers, the outriggers on the launchers partially extended in preparation for firing.

Glaringly absent from all of that were space-capable vessels of any kind. Every rooftop shipyard the Mosaic passed over was empty. No doubt the TSN had cleared out the Chrysalium gateways from all planet-side transport terminals as well. They wanted to make sure any potential Chrysalium sources were kept well away from him.

The TSN wasn’t taking any chances on a repeat of what happened on Xalantas.

Yes, when he saw that sheer military might on display, and the lack of Chrysalium, Tane knew he was probably stepping into something a little over his head.

Well, there’s no turning back now.

26

The Mosaic approached the military complex where the Paramount Leader was staying. It was a sprawling compound with multiple outbuildings. Electrified walls topped by laser wire surrounded the entire complex. Multiple turrets—some containing missiles, others laser or plasma blasters—resided both atop the encircling walls, and several of the buildings. These turrets, without fail, tracked the Mosaic during its approach. Armed drones meanwhile patrolled the skies above.

“Enough security for you?” Nebb said over the comm. He watched from his quarters.

The Mosaic approached a landing pad situated among the outbuildings. Unsurprisingly, there were no other ships down there. Beyond the nearby buildings, he could see a palace: a long, box-like structure with towering spires jutting from the four corners, and a golden dome rising from its center. The dome itself was topped by a small silver cupola, glinting in the sunlight.

When the ship landed, Tane dismissed the video feed. He was in the cockpit, with Sinive and Gia.

“It’s time,” Gia said.

Tane swallowed. “I’m not sure I can go through with this.”

“Well they’re not going to let us take off again,” Gia said. “You know that, right?”

“Of course I know,” Tane said. “That doesn’t mean I’m ready.”

Sinive held his hand. “The plan will work.”

Tane regarded her with a wan smile, then settled himself on the deck, propping his back against the bulkhead behind him and crossing his legs. He reached into his storage pouch and retrieved the bone crown.

He rotated the object in his hands. “I never wanted this, you know. Never asked to be the Bender of Worlds.”

“You’re going to get all retrospecty on us now?” Gia said.

He had practiced with that crown once before arriving, several hours ago. But now he was beginning to feel like that Emerald session had been woefully inadequate.

“I could’ve been practicing all this time,” Tane said. “In fact, I should’ve been.”

“You would have only succeeded in exhausting yourself,” Sinive said.

“Maybe,” Tane said. “But still, I should have. I’ve been avoiding parting the veil. The Emerald is…”

Sinive knelt beside him and once more placed her hand around his. “You can do this.”

Tane nodded slowly. But he still hesitated. She doesn’t know how difficult the coming fight will be. She doesn’t understand.

“Okay,” Gia said. Her eyes were defocused, as if she were inside her chip. “The TSN is instructing us to vacate the vessel immediately. They’ve surrounded the Mosaic in a perimeter of mechs and scepter robots. Muse counts a hundred and ten of them.”

Tane regarded the bone crown intensely one final time.

Where are you? Why haven’t you shown yourself?

No answer came.

Reluctantly, he set the item down upon his troubled brow.

The fight for control began immediately. He could feel the grazer trying to dominate him. Its will seemed stronger than before, as if the last times he had parted the veil, it had been holding back, perhaps trying to assuage the strength of Tane’s own willpower, and this time it had finally decided to fight with everything it had. Perhaps it sensed the utter desperation inside of him, and now, in this moment of need, it had decided to thwart him.

The crown seemed to press into his skull as if it had turned into a giant maw.

Tane saw the grazer then, its body floating above him, visible to his eyes alone. The outskirts of its translucent flesh overlapped the surrounding bulkheads and overhead, so that most of its body was lost behind the cockpit’s frame. But its head and neck were completely visible. And its mouth was wrapped firmly around his skull, squeezing.

There you are, my friend, Tane thought grimly. Let’s begin our dance, shall we?

In answer, the grazer continued to tighten those jaws, crushing his brain.

He tried frantically to part the veil to the Emerald that waited beyond, but the grazer wouldn’t let him through. The pain began to build. His face and head pulsed agonizingly with every heartbeat.

He fought it, but it was no use. His head might as well have been in a vise, and in moments his mind would ooze through the cracked bones of his skull like so much red and gray paste.

He screamed.

* * *

Tane was led, staggering, from the ship. Sinive and Gia held him up—the pair had planted their shoulders beneath his underarms, so that the crooks of his elbows were slung across their necks. Positron, Nebb, and Chase led the way, their hands held behind their heads. The rifles, laser turrets and missile launchers of the scepters and mechs ringing the Mosaic followed each party member as they stepped down the ramp and onto the landing platform.

When Tane reached the bottom of the ramp, one of the surrounding scepters came forward.

“What’s wrong with him?” the robot said.

“He tried to do something that was beyond his reach,” Sinive said. “He failed.”

The robot beckoned to others behind it. More scepters came forward, and they promptly attached multiple Restrainers to Tane’s bare forehead. He staggered further under the weariness, and two robots replaced Sinive and Gia. The scepters bound his hands behind his back, and propped him up by the elbows, sharing them between their metal arms. His storage pouch was taken away. One of the robots injected Tane with something, only furthering his distance from reality. He was no longer able to stand on his own feet at all, and the robots literally dragged him forward.

“You’re killing him!” Sinive said.

Several scepters surrounded her and the remaining members of the party: the robots took away their storage pouches and weapons, and bound their hands behind their backs with energy nets like Tane before leading them forward. The robots ensured at least two armed scepters separated them from one another at all times.

As the party and their robot escort passed beyond the ring of mechs, Essence warriors fell into step alongside them, and Mancers. No medical robots were with them: they didn’t bother to chip Tane this time—they had seen how futile their chipping attempts had been in the past. That meant they didn’t yet know Repel Nanotech lasted only sixty seconds. They simply assumed he was immune to the effects, when in truth they could chip him at any time and take complete and irrevocable control of his mind. This despite the fact the TSN had undoubtedly captured a full imprint of his mind the last time he was in their custody. Eventually they would finish sifting through and rebuilding his engrams enough to extract the knowledge regarding Repel Nanotech, but until then, he held at least that small advantage over them.

An Essence warrior pulled in front of the others to take the lead. He wore a helmet with a golden plume that fell to the nape of his neck.

Tane was guided across the platform, through the outbuildings, and up the steps leading to the magnificent palace. Multiple stone columns formed the entablature; the frieze and cornice were decorated in silver and gold, while the columns themselves were fronted by paintings, most depicting the military might of the TSN: starships, mechs, and armed scepters were common themes.

Tane was led inside, through a marble entrance hall that contained busts of the previous Paramount Leaders. There were also tapestries, and more paintings. Tane crossed an inner courtyard lined with trees and two fountains. The place definitely had the feel of a vacation palace.

He was taken inside a cavernous reception hall. No, not a reception hall… a throne room. He could literally see the seat of power lurking on the far side.

A red carpet led down the center of the room, with black-veined marble columns lining it upon either side. The vaulted ceiling had painted mosaics intermingled between different skylights.

Men in formal jackets and women in evening gowns lingered against the far walls, watching, waiting. Courtiers, most likely.

An expectant silence seemed to settle over that gathered throng as Tane was dragged inside. Because of the carpet, and perhaps other sound dampening technology, that silence was only enhanced, with the footsteps of Tane’s escort and that of his companions muted as they approached.

Armed guards stood between the columns, separating Tane from the courtiers. A different contingent harbored in each of the gaps: Essence warriors alternated with Mancers and scepter robots.

Tane approached the throne. Presumably that was the Paramount Leader he saw seated there. On either side of said leader were two Volurs, one male, one female, Chrysalium accessories bedecking them in excess: their fingers were sheathed in silver rings, multiple necklaces weighed down their throats, and they carried silver scepters in either hand. They also wore armored robes and shield generators.

They were flanked by two menacing-looking mechs. And those in turn were flanked by Essence warriors and Mancers.

Behind the throne, to the left and right, were two scepter robots. And on the right side of them stood Nelson and a woman Tane had never seen before. She was dressed in military fatigues like Nelson, but her face was too perfect to be human. Synthetic, then. Tane thought she outranked the man. He ID’d her:

Name: Brizan

Race: Robot (synthetic)

Level: 26

Class: Personal Assistant to Alric Graim Maelbane, Thorran Star Navy

Weaponry:

1x B1 Plasma Pistol, Biter model.

Shielding: Energy. (75/75)

Base Armor rating: 75

Total armor rating (including shielding): 150

Certainly well-equipped for a personal assistant.

Tane and his military escort came to a halt five meters from the throne.

The Essence warrior wearing the golden plume on his helmet stepped forward and beckoned toward Tane. “Great Leader. The prisoner.”

“Bring him forward,” the Paramount Leader intoned. His voice was deep, seeming sourced from an almost inhuman throat. No doubt modified by some hidden tone generator.

The golden-plumed warrior glanced at the robots surrounding Tane. “Bring him.”

The scepter escort parted, and the two that held Tane carried him forward.

They deposited Tane kneeling on the floor three meters in front of the throne. That was as close as they were going to allow him to get, apparently. The two robots remained standing on either side of Tane, obviously guarding.

Bowing, barely able to keep his head upright, Tane saw a small black object on the floor in front of and to the right of the throne: blue pulses traveled up and down its length. He realized that was likely yet another shield generator, enclosing the entire front portion of the room in an energy field, in addition to the personal generators the Paramount Leader and those around him wore.

“Look at me,” the Paramount Leader commanded.

Tane drunkenly forced his head to rise.

The first thing Tane saw were the black boots, polished to such a sheen that Tane could see the outline of his reflection in them. Above that was a ceremonial uniform: crisp white pants, shirt, and jacket, with medals and other decorations over the left breast. If Tane had had his augmented reality interface active, he would have probably witnessed more such decorations on the digital band.

Rubies tipped the armrests on either side of the throne, and the Paramount Leader’s hands rested upon them. The man wore a single signet ring on his right index finger, a ring with the ship and dagger symbol of the TSN carved into it.

At the collar, a cape flowed down underneath the body, sheathing the padded cushions of the throne the Paramount Leader sat upon.

His face was weathered, with hard lines delineating the jaw and brow. His nose jutted forth like a hawk’s, and behind it were cruel, calculating eyes. A strong man, one not to be trifled with.

A black crown rested low on his brow, the ship and dagger symbol of the TSN glowing in blue near the front. Strands of gray hair bristled from beneath the edges.

He looked very much like what Tane would have imagined. And imagination was all Tane really had before this, because despite all of his searching on the Galnet beforehand, he had been unable to come up with any videos or pictures of the Paramount Leader. The monitoring AIs employed by the TSN deleted any such media the moment it cropped up online. He hadn’t even found anything on the Dark Galnet, so that Tane had almost begun to believe that the Paramount Leader was a fiction.

Tane ran an ID on the man.

Name: Alric Graim Maelbane

Race: Human

Level: 32

Class: Supreme Paramount Leader, Thorran Star Navy

Weaponry: None

Shielding: Energy. (145/145)

Base Armor rating: 50

Total armor rating (including shielding): 195

Tane didn’t know if that level was faked, or real, but given that the man was Paramount Leader, he suspected it was accurate. It was the second highest level Tane had ever seen. And that total armor was certainly the highest he’d ever witnessed. Tane was somewhat surprised by the base armor rating as well: either the ceremonial uniform was woven with special carbon-fiber threads, or the Paramount Leader wore hidden plates underneath. Or maybe that rating was faked, too.

“So this is the great Bender of Worlds,” the Paramount Leader said in his modified voice. “Kneeling before the most powerful man in the galaxy. As is only right. The Thorran Star Navy welcomes you.”

Tane remained silent.

“My subordinates tell me you can’t be chipped,” the man, Alric, continued. “This presents an interesting conundrum. If I cannot control you, you are of little use to me. Will you willingly follow me?”

Again, Tane did not answer.

The Paramount Leader forced a weak smile. “I thought as much. Why did you come here? What did you hope to gain? I held no leverage over you.”

Tane held his tongue a third time.

Alric glanced over his shoulder, in the direction of Nelson and Brizan, the synthetic. “Are you sure you didn’t damage his mind when you chipped him?”

“His medical reports showed his mind as intact at the time,” Nelson said. “Though it’s possible his neural tissue has degraded since then.”

“I want him taken to the Alcove and scanned immediately,” Alric said. “And then—”

“I was tired…” Tane interrupted.

The Paramount Leader tilted his head toward Tane. “Say again?”

“I was tired of running,” Tane said, defeated.

“Well, you won’t have to run anymore,” the Paramount Leader said. “In fact, you won’t be doing much of anything.” He turned his head toward the synthetic behind him. “I want him placed in stasis indefinitely. Until I decide what to do with him, he is to be kept under the highest possible guard. Is that clear?”

“Very much so,” Brizan said.

“You are in league with the creodenti,” Tane said.

Alric turned his head toward Tane. “Excuse me?” When Tane didn’t answer, the Paramount Leader glanced at the Volur to his right. “What is he talking about?”

“I believe he is referring to a long extinct alien species,” the Volur said.

Alric raised an eyebrow. “I’m in league with an extinct alien species? Well, I believe I’ve heard enough. It’s obvious the so-called World Bender is not quite all there. Now the lot of you understand why it was so important that we tracked him down. Why we put the entire resources of the star navy behind his capture: we couldn’t let someone of his immense powers remain at large, not when his mind was gone. Take him to the Alcove.”

“And yet despite all the resources at your command, you only captured me because I willingly surrendered,” Tane said.

“You knew the noose was tightening,” the Paramount Leader said. “You knew it was only a matter of time. That is why you surrendered. But I’m done with you.” He waved a dismissive hand.

The scepters hoisted Tane to his feet.

Tane spasmed suddenly, and began to froth at the mouth.

The other combat robots surrounded Tane and pointed their rifles at him.

Tane continued spasming wildly, and then collapsed in the arms of the robots.

“Get the medic!” Nelson shouted. He hurried forward and parted the ranks.

A medical robot appeared and rolled toward Tane. It extended a telescoping arm and lifted one of his eyelids. A bright light flashed from the tip of the appendage.

“He’s dead,” the robot announced.

Gasps passed throughout the room.

“No!” Sinive shouted. She tried to break free of her captors, but the robots held on tightly. “Let me go to him!”

But the scepters refused.

The medical robot retrieved a small object from the side of Tane’s neck. “He was struck with this. A small dart containing a concentrated dosage of sodium cyanide. Someone in this room is responsible for his death.”

Sinive slumped. “No. It can’t be true. I don’t believe it.” She struggled again for a moment, then ceased. She couldn’t break free of the vise-like grips of the robots that held her.

The Essence warrior with the golden plume walked from the scene, threading between the Mancers who stood guard between two pillars on the left flank of the hall. All eyes followed him as he approached a small man who lingered among the courtiers there.

The man in question was dressed in formal attire like the others, but was otherwise extremely ordinary looking: he wouldn’t have stood out in a crowd. He was so average, in fact, that if the surrounding courtiers were asked to recall his face a day later, they would have been hard-pressed to give a description, and would have had to delve into any video archives their chips stored in order to produce anything tenable.

Four big Mancers stepped forward to stand beside the small man—no doubt they were part of a retinue of private guards employed by that particular courtier. They regarded the plumed Essence warrior with dangerous eyes.

But before those Mancers could do anything, the Essence warrior placed a hand on the courtier’s shoulder and the two vanished from existence entirely.

27

The throne room darkened, becoming tinted the deep blue of the Umbra, and all the soldiers, courtiers, and robots vanished. Only two men remained.

Tane stood next to the far wall, towering over the small man. The bone crown weighed heavily on his brow. Green bolts of lightning shot back and forth all around him. The Emerald sparked across his nervous system, filling him with a bliss that was distracting.

Tane dropped the illusion with which he clothed himself, so that he no longer appeared as the Essence warrior with the golden plume. The original warrior lay unconscious outside, thanks to the surreptitious injection Tane had made before replacing him.

“Where have you taken me?” the small man said. He held both of his hands balled into fists at his sides.

“To the Umbra,” Tane said.

“But you don’t have that ability yet,” the man said. “You’re too low level.”

Tane nodded. Lyra would have told them about the level seven Essencework while she was under the TSN’s control.

“Oh but I do have the ability,” Tane said. “I’ve been busy since I last encountered your minions. I’m level seven in Dark and White mixing.”

“Impossible,” the man said.

“I assure you, it’s completely possible,” Tane told him.

“How did you know?” the man asked.

“That you were the Paramount Leader, and not the decoy you installed on your throne?” Tane replied. “You made a mistake by letting the rest of my team come with me. We have a pretty good hacker among our members. She tracked all the encrypted communications sent by the different security forces you had deployed around the throne room, and using the chips of my remaining companions she was able to triangulate the source. One man resided at the center of all those communications, and it wasn’t the man seated on the throne, but a man standing on the sidelines, the true Paramount Leader, cowering in the presence of the Bender of Worlds, too afraid to show himself.”

The Paramount Leader hissed something and then opened his hand. A small rock dropped from his palm onto the floor.

A gray gateway opened underneath the true Alric, and he fell into its depths immediately.

Well that was unexpected.

Tane took a deep breath, then stepped onto the gate and plunged after Alric before it could seal.

Here goes nothing.

As Tane fell, he glanced at the throne room behind him. When he had reached level two in Emerald Siphoning, the muscle memory for Illusion had unlocked completely inside of him, and he knew all the intricacies involved, and the varying types of illusions of which he was capable. He utilized one of those intricacies now to dismiss the final illusion that remained in place, and before he passed completely through the inter-dimensional gateway, the throne room and all the soldiers inside of it winked back into existence.

In the center of the room, Tane’s clone was replaced by G’allanthamas, clad in the alien environmental suit. The earlier dart intended for Tane would have harmlessly bounced off that suit.

The dweller raised his tentacles in surrender as Tane plunged from view and this universe winked out.

* * *

Tane had fallen into a basement room of the palace. The stone around him glowed bluish with a hidden power. Metal crates were piled upon that stone, but there were otherwise no other furnishings present, and certainly no sign of the Paramount Leader—likely the man had already fled into the adjacent room.

Tane clambered to his feet and activated his shield generator. When he moved, small gray shockwaves traveled outward from his body, like ripples across the surface of a lake. Those shockwaves quickly faded to nothingness beyond a meter out from his body. He noticed that even when he stood still those gray ripples expanded from him, though at a lower intensity.

The bliss of the Emerald still sparked across his neurons. That the Synthate hadn’t been ripped away from him as soon as he entered this universe was a good sign. He tried to step into the White, and touch the Dark—he was able to achieve both. He promptly ceased Siphoning either, but continued to hang on to the Emerald for now.

Tane hurried to the closest doorway and leaned past. He saw only an empty hallway beyond.

He hadn’t been certain what the Paramount Leader would do when tricked into believing Tane had transported him into the Umbra. Tane had suspected the man would attempt to flee, but he didn’t think Alric would escape directly to another universe. The archaeoceti hadn’t been kidding when they said the Paramount Leader could take him to the creodenti.

Assuming this was actually the universe where the creodenti resided.

The fact that Alric had used a rock to create the portal lent credence to that theory, seeing as S’Wraathar had utilized similar artifacts to summon the rock creatures. Well, Tane was in some other universe anyway, domain of the creodenti or not; he worried vaguely about infection from microcrillia equivalents, but hoped this universe didn’t have them.

Tane momentarily ducked for cover back inside the basement room. He couldn’t create another Illusion, nor any other work of the Emerald. He didn’t dare. Still, he was reluctant to let go of the Synthate. That bliss was never easy to give up, not even in the memories granted by the archaeoceti.

He reluctantly sealed the veil and the Emerald left him, along with the pleasure. He staggered in exhaustion, the bone crown feeling heavy on his brow. The grazer, still cowed from their earlier duel of wills, remained in hiding beyond the veil.

Tane had a splitting headache. It felt like he had dunked his head into the plasma outflow of an engine conduit.

Still, it was better to feel that way than to allow the Emerald free reign over his neurons, as by letting the pleasure of the Synthate immerse him he would be tempted to use it again. Doing so now, without Lyra to heal the resultant nerve damage, would lead only to his death. Yes, far better to seal the veil than allowing the exhaustion to utterly, and secretly, consume him.

He wasn’t completely exhausted though, and definitely not as tired as he had been after Reviving Sinive. The initial creation of the illusion had been the most draining part, due to the sheer effort of will involved in mastering the grazer, and then the concentration required to interlink the complex network of Synthate lightning bolts. But once that had been done, he was able to Siphon a steady stream of Emerald into the illusion and otherwise rest his mind, at least somewhat. As such, he felt confident enough to Siphon the White or Dark if he needed to. Well, mostly the White, as he didn’t really feel up to the effort of creating a Dark timeline, due to the complexity involved. That said, he had already stored two Dark works in reserve anyway, works he had created several hours ago: both were Fingers of Ruin. As for the White, he thought he could form Essence Missiles without too much difficulty, but he was worried he’d only be able to create a few before wearying himself and having to step out of the Essence. They would be weak Missiles, too, at that.

Tane retrieved the D18 from his storage pouch, intending to use that as his only weapon for now. He wore the beam hilt around his neck via the cord he had secured to the device, giving him an Endurance boost. It helped. If he needed the hilt, he could tear it from his neck, breaking the cord.

He turned toward the doorway again and was about to step past it and into the hallway beyond, but a sixth sense stopped him.

Tane retreated, and grabbed one of the smaller crates from the pile beside him. He hurled it past the doorway. Before it landed in the hallway outside, it had turned to stone. It shattered when it struck the floor.

Not good.

Tane hauled another crate to the door and also hurled it past. This time it landed with a metallic thud, remaining intact. So he’d triggered the trap, which was a one-time variant, apparently.

Tane slowly crept through the door. He wished he had the Reveal Surveillance Essencework, which would show him any traps nearby. It was available at White Siphoning Level Five. As usual, he was sorely unprepared for the trials that awaited him.

You’re not ready to face the Paramount Leader.

But like G’allanthamas had said, Tane would never be ready. Even with Reveal Surveillance, he wouldn’t have been invulnerable. No matter how powerful he became, he never would be. He was still a man. And besides, that particular Essencework might have made him complacent, causing him to miss a trap that he assumed he could detect.

Still, if he was a higher level in all the Essences, things would have been much easier. He vowed to spend a few solid weeks leveling up as soon as this ordeal was done. The universe would just have to endure until then.

He advanced cautiously, keeping his gaze on the doors that lined the hallway ahead, and the crossroads in the corridor beyond them. The stone walls glowed blue, and those grayish shockwaves continued to travel outward from his body. He suspected those shockwaves were the manifestation of whatever hidden power this universe harbored, and indicated his ability to wield that power. Maybe he was wrong, but so far he had been able to wield the power of every other universe he had visited.

He reached the first of the doors that lined the hallway. It was made of metal, unlike the stone walls, and thus didn’t glow. The lock was biometrically sealed. He couldn’t open it.

At least, not via ordinary means.

Tane held his plasma blaster to the door and fired. The metal around the lock melted inward, and he kicked it open a moment later.

He found only an empty storage compartment filled with metal crates like the one he had just left.

He heard frantic shouts coming from somewhere ahead. Skipping past the other sealed doors, he hurried forward to the crossroads, and in the hallway to the left he spotted a staircase leading up to the main floor. Essence warriors were running down those stairs. They weren’t surrounded by gray shockwaves, like Tane.

It seemed the Paramount Leader had stowed a human platoon in this universe, ready to answer at his beck and call. If the Paramount Leader had access to this realm, it made some sense that he would deploy troops here once arriving at any location where he planned to stay for any significant length of time, in the event he needed to flee here.

Either that, or Alric had already returned to Umanitar and had sent these men inside after him.

Tane dashed onward and the hallway opened up into a wider underground concourse. He headed toward the stairs on the far side and raced to the first floor above.

He had only just emerged from the lower left corner of the throne room when a distortion tunnel opened up in the center of the room. The place wouldn’t have been in the line of sight of any Mancers among the troops below—that told him they had marked the area with a beacon, and thus had definitely deployed here previously.

Essence warriors emerged from the distortion tunnel, leading the charge.

Tane unleashed both works of Fingers of Ruin he had in reserve, taking down two of the warriors leading the vanguard. The others shouted, and instinctively dove behind nearby pillars for cover.

Tane meanwhile proceeded at a mad dash toward the exit to the throne room, only a few meters in front of him. There was only one hope for him, given his current weakened state.

He raced into the courtyard that was lined with trees and fountains.

Another distortion tunnel opened directly in front of him, between the two fountains.

Tane swerved around it, held his D18 behind him, and squeezed the trigger. He prayed he wasn’t in range of any Mancers and their Telekinesis works.

He dove for cover behind one of the trees, and then took a side hallway. He hurried down it.

In moments it opened into the main entrance hall, and he sprinted across the bare marble. He knocked over the bust of one of the former Paramount Leaders before crashing through the entryway.

Two mechs had been deployed there, their weapons trained on the entrance.

Tane released two quick Essence Missiles, boring into the cockpits of both mechs and taking them down. But one of them managed to get off a short laser burst. A powerful one, at that.

Shield strength, 0%.

The laser bored a hole into his armored robe underneath. He staggered, not from the laser impact, but because of what the two Essence Missiles had taken out of him; he edged his way past the wreckages of those mechs, recovering enough to take the steps leading down to the walkway below two at a time. He moved away from the palace, threading between the outbuildings for cover. Overhead, the sky glowed with the same pale blue as the pavement underneath him.

He peered past the final building between him and the Mosaic’s location. Alric had deployed several scepters, Mancers, and Essence warriors to stand guard around the ship’s copy in this universe. Tane was actually expecting the ship to be gone entirely, carried away by some larger vessel so that there would be no chance he could ever touch it at all. In fact, given the thoroughness of the TSN, it probably was gone, at least in his own universe, and the snapshot of the vessel in this one was merely lagging, thanks to the presence of those troops from Umanitar.

Their first mistake.

Tane ducked from view, and then clambered onto the small collection of barrels next to his current outbuilding, pulled himself onto the roof, and lay down to rest and recover.

After about ten minutes, he felt strong enough to create a small Emerald work. Probably a good thing, because by then the TSN troops had brought in drone units to begin searching the rooftops—Tane could hear the buzz of their rotors growing in strength.

He crawled to the edge of the building and lowered himself back down. He heard a shout from the direction of the Mosaic, and the buzzing of drones increased dramatically in volume as no doubt several swooped toward him.

He had been spotted.

28

Tane parted the veil of the bone crown that rested on his brow, and thankfully the grazer gave way readily this time. Tane patted the inter-dimensional creature in approval with his mind, and in return it pressed gently back, so that he had the impression the grazer was nuzzling him with its nose.

Nerve-searing pain filled him almost immediately, soon giving way to bliss. From the lightning that sparked into existence, Tane created the necessary work and set it upon himself. Then he sealed the veil and allowed the pleasure to fade away, and exhaustion to return. He couldn’t use the Emerald again, not for a long while. White and Dark were still available to him, however.

He quickly spoofed his ID to the name and class he desired. Tane prayed the level difference wasn’t noticed, since he currently couldn’t spoof that.

At the same time as several drones appeared overhead, an Essence warrior rounded the bend, Chrysalium sword in one hand, pistol the other.

The man immediately lowered his weapons. “My apologies, Paramount Leader! We thought—”

But Tane cut him off with a disdainful nod, and walked curtly past the man toward the ship. Underneath him, the asphalt of the tarmac glowed just like the stone and marble walls of the palace.

He reached the ring of troops and addressed the closest man.

“I want him found,” Tane growled in the voice of the Paramount Leader.

“We’re continuing the building by building search,” the warrior said. “If he’s here, we’ll find him.”

“I want the search expanded outside the palace grounds immediately,” Tane said. “Send drones to nearby shipyards and terminals. He will be seeking a Chrysalium source.”

“But we’ve removed all nearby sources,” the trooper said, confirming Tane’s earlier suspicions.

“Yes, but he doesn’t know that,” Tane said.

“It will be done,” the trooper said.

Tane stepped toward the ring and the troops immediately parted, allowing him to continue toward the Mosaic and its open ramp. No one made any attempt to stop him. Why would they? He was the Paramount Leader. Supreme ruler of the TSN.

He’d only just started up the ramp when the ringing troops all turned their weapons toward him. No doubt the real Paramount Leader had sent a message to his troops on an encrypted band, informing them of the situation.

But Tane already had his hand inside his storage pouch, and he pulled out one of the Dark Artifacts he had, commanding it to expand at the same time.

The troops opened fire then, but the artifact had already arrived at its full height and easily reached over his head, serving as a shield. In fact it was so big that it abutted the underside of the hull, and the tarmac below cracked to accommodate it since the Chrysalium of the starship wasn’t going to give.

Tane touched the black surface and reached toward the underside of the ship above him at the same time, which was just within contact range thanks to his position on the ramp. When his fingers touched, he allowed the hurricane of White to gust across his bones from the Chrysalium hull, while the artifact provided a conflagration of Darkness in counterbalance, searing through his core.

Siphoning bonus. All Dark Essenceworks are enhanced 570% due to Siphoning through Dark Artifact.

Siphoning bonus. All White Essenceworks are enhanced 3429% due to Siphoning through Chrysalium hull.

Tane sent out his Essence Sight lifeline, allowing him to see beyond the shield of the Dark Artifact. From the massive maelstrom of stellar wind that erupted from his core, he grew an Essence Missile, using the flames of the Dark to buttress the White, which otherwise would have been uncontrollable. Then he released the immense work, which appeared as a blindingly bright light that towered over his body, a White shape spidered through with veins of Dark and surrounded by black lightning.

He sent the Missile through the line of troops in front of him, and then steered it around the ship in a sweeping motion. Some of the mechs and robots managed to dodge out of the way thanks to their high Dexterity, but Tane got most of the Mancers and Essence warriors.

When the work faded, he created another. The Dark helped stave off the weariness, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to last much longer.

He sent this work out as well, this time toward the score of troops that had emerged from one of the nearby outbuildings, obviously part of a group responsible for sweeping the different structures. They attempted to scatter, but Tane plowed that missile right through them, swerving it left and right as he did so, taking them all down.

He rotated his Essence Sight, scanning the immediate area, wary of any distortion tunnels that his enemy might be planning to open up. He was worried that they might try to jump just behind him, at the top of the ramp, and he had to be ready if they did.

But he sensed movement coming from the direction of the palace. He focused his Essence Sight there and spotted Alric. The Paramount Leader had stepped out from behind an outbuilding.

Alric was holding a rock: gray ripples rapidly expanded outward from the item and homed in on Tane.

Before Tane could do anything, the ripples struck.

Against his will, he stepped out of the White and released the Dark. He wanted to slump in exhaustion, but could no longer move. It wasn’t so much his body that was caught within an invisible vise, but his mind.

The Paramount Leader approached, stepping around the dark artifact so that he was in Tane’s full view. The surviving troops gathered around him: two mechs, three scepter robots, one Mancer, and four Essence warriors.

“I would have used this upon you earlier,” the Paramount Leader said when he was near the base of the ramp. Tane hadn’t been able to move the whole time. “But unfortunately the potency isn’t as great as when applied within the Sedentia itself. Here, even the strongest of minds can be broken. I’ve taken all of my generals here at one point, and most of my Volur advisers, to do this very thing. It has been my secret weapon, winning me negotiations galaxy-wide. A way to do so without having to inject nanotech, which always leaves a mark upon a subject’s brain, and thus a means to trace treachery. But Mind Shape, a gift of the creodenti, leaves no trace.”

Tane found that he could still move his mouth, so he said: “At what cost? What price have you paid the creodenti?”

Tane flinched as the vise tightened around him mind.

“Yes, you are a strong one,” Alric said. “I expected that, given our previous chippings failed to take hold. But I suppose that given how many Essences you can Siphon, by nature you’d have to be strong. But it doesn’t matter, because you’re mine now. I planned to use Mind Shape upon you once you were in the Alcove. I was going to announce that we’d developed a way to chip you successfully after all. I will simply move that announcement forward.”

Tane glared at the man. He felt the White, Dark, and even the Emerald waiting beyond the edges of perception for him, but he couldn’t access any of them. He was completely under Alric’s control.

“It’s a great gift you have,” Alric said, coming close to examine the gray shockwaves that continually emanated from Tane. “And you don’t even know it. You can wield the Gray Essence, without the need of triggerable reservoirs. The Essence shockwaves coming from your body are evidence of that. With you at my side, I won’t have to rely upon the creodenti for the scraps of power they deign to give me. You will become my power source.”

Tane smiled inside. The idiot actually assumed that Tane knew how to use the so-called Gray Essence. Then again, he’d have access to all of Tane’s other abilities. The inner smile quickly faded.

As he stared at the man, he realized that while most of the shockwaves traveled outward from his body in random directions, there was a small portion that proceeded directly from his mind toward Alric’s, appearing as a concentric series of circles and forming a tube of sorts. Those circles still faded about a meter from Tane, but he had no doubt they continued onward until they touched Alric’s forehead, part of whatever Gray Essencework the Paramount Leader was using to control his mind.

When Tane focused his gaze upon the spot where he estimated those circles touched Alric’s temples, he felt something. He wasn’t sure what it was. A vibration of sorts, on a different plane of existence, or dimension.

He realized the concentric circles linked his mind to Alric’s in some way.

Tane explored those pulses, feeling around in the dark. The vibrations varied in intensity as he went deeper, sometimes becoming stronger, sometimes weaker. Tane realized he was plumbing the depths of Alric’s mind by probing those vibrations. It was an unintentional side effect of the Essencework, one that Alric obviously didn’t know about, since he couldn’t actually wield the Gray.

Unlike Tane.

If Tane could find the spot where the vibrations were strongest, perhaps he might find some way to break free. Or at least exert some influence over Alric, because the source of the vibrations would be that portion of Alric’s mind that was controlling him. At least, that was the running theory. He wasn’t actually sure what he’d do once he found it.

He felt a spike in the vibrations, and then retraced his steps in the dark.

Only an instant had passed since Tane had begun his probing. So far, Alric hadn’t exhibited any signs that he noticed.

The vibrations were growing strong again as he retraced his route. Yes. There. He’d found the source.

Now what?

Tane attempted to exert his will upon the vibrations. Pressing down, harder, ever harder.

Alric’s face dropped. “What are you doing?”

Tane squeezed with as much force of will as he was capable, but it was like trying to crush an iron ball. It simply wasn’t possible.

He released the pressure, and the vibrations sprung back as powerful as ever.

Alric inhaled forcibly.

“Stop that!” the Paramount Leader ordered.

Tane felt the vibrations intensify, and realized that was the result of Alric’s command, bearing down upon Tane’s own mind.

He had to act quickly, in the split second before the instructions registered with his hindbrain.

But what could he do?

Wait. If he couldn’t squelch those vibrations with his will, perhaps an alternate approach was in order.

He reached inside those vibrations, and added his own, increasing the intensity. Before he knew what was happening, the vibrational source had opened and swallowed him right up…

29

Alric was the youngest admiral of the navies ever assigned to the role, and it was due solely to his relationship with Frederick Marlow, high president of the Free Planets of Thorran. The two had been friends since childhood, and despite the very different paths they had taken, had always remained in contact. Alric was already a distinguished and decorated officer, attaining the admiralty at an age that was also considered young, so that when Frederick became high president, Alric was the natural choice. When Frederick called him to ask if he would accept the role if it was offered, Alric told him it was his duty to serve.

Alric got the position the next day.

The two of them consulted together on matters of policy and strategy. Alric often had to make tough decisions, dispatching the fleet to quell the different rebellions that sometimes erupted within the vast Thorran territory, or sending ships to deal with delicate situations involving the Volur.

But then the war with the dwellers came.

Frederick made a series of costly mistakes, ignoring the advice of Alric and his top admirals, and in the process had managed to reduce the size of the star navy to half of its former glory. They had lost thousands of ships. And hundreds of thousands of lives.

They were going to lose the war.

And to add insult to injury, now that the navy’s scientists had come up with a plan to end the threat of the dwellers outright, Frederick refused to implement it.

“How many human lives must be lost to the dwellers?” Alric had argued after Frederick dismissed the other military advisors. “Let the plan proceed.”

“I can’t authorize it,” Frederick said. “Your tacticians want to destroy an entire homeworld. A homeworld! Ninety billion dwellers live there, by our estimates. Almost all of them civilians. It’s not right.”

“What choice do we have?” Alric said softly. “They’re alien. Not human. Alien. You can’t forget that.”

“We’re all brothers in this galaxy,” Frederick commented.

“There’s something to be said about sticking up for one’s own species,” Alric said. “It’s people like you who will be the end of us. People like you who value alien life over our own. We have a right to exist, too. And given how things are going at the moment, I’m sad to say this, but it’s either us or them.”

“Famous last words, spoken throughout our checkered history,” Frederick said.

The high president went to the portable fridge he kept in his office and retrieved a bottle of aged cognac, given to him by the ambassador to Greater Pindi.

“I told myself I would open this bottle only for a special occasion,” Frederick murmured.

He proceeded to open the bottle and poured himself a small glass. He took a sip, and then turned to face Alric. He beckoned toward one of the empty glasses, but Alric shook his head.

Frederick took another sip.

“There has to be an other way, my old friend,” Frederick said. “We have sent a contingent of Volurs to propose another peace treaty. Maybe this time—”

“The dwellers don’t know what peace is,” Alric interrupted. “They know only war. They live for it. They haven’t accepted any of our previous proposals, why should they accept this one?” Alric rubbed his brow. “Frederick. They know they’re winning. They’re enjoying this… this is sport to them! They won’t stop until they wipe us out. You must see this?”

“I’m sorry,” Frederick said. “I won’t authorize the destruction of their homeworld. Not until it’s the only path available to us.”

“By then it will be too late,” Alric said, storming from the office.

Frederick had forced Alric’s hand. It was the president’s fault that Alric had to do what he was about to do.

We have to make hard choices in this life. And in war. Terrible choices.

Alric had received the message that very morning. Effective immediately, Alric was no longer the admiral of the navies.

He smiled grimly. Bad move, Frederick.

He gave the order, and the fighting began.

Alric’s most loyal men had sent troops to engage with the president’s security forces. Alric joined in the fighting, surrounded by his personal guard—Mancers, Essence warriors, and scepters.

As the defenders fell he made his way forward until at last he was standing before the final door. The wreckages of two mechs littered the entryway. In the ceiling, a broken laser turret hung in tatters, shot down where the defense system had deployed.

“Bring the laser cutters!” he told the scepters, and they came forward and began to carve their way into the bunker.

More defenders awaited within. When they were destroyed, Alric went inside, alone.

The door to the conference room was open. Alric went inside.

Frederick sat alone at the far end of the table.

“So this is what it comes to, my old friend?” Frederick said sadly.

“You will transfer the government over to the control of the navy,” Alric said. “I’ll need the command codes.”

“I won’t give them to you willingly,” Frederick said.

“Then I’ll take them by force,” Alric said.

“You’ll have to kill me,” Frederick said. “And reconstruct the codes from brain scans.”

“If I must…” Alric said.

Frederick stared at him, unblinking. “Then do it. I won’t be a willing party to the destruction of ninety billion lives. Alien or not.”

Alric started to raise his pistol, but then hesitated.

Frederick smiled. “Go ahead. Do it. I’m not going to help you out here. I won’t give you an excuse. I won’t even draw a weapon. If you want to kill me, it will have to be in cold blood.”

Alric forced his face to remain hard. He would not smile, would not frown, would not allow a flicker of emotion.

He raised his hand and aimed for the center of mass. Had to keep the brain intact.

Before he could change his mind, he squeezed the trigger.

What was left of Frederick slumped onto the table. His insides clung in smears to the wall behind the chair, and fell away in gory clumps as Alric watched. Underneath the body, blood pooled across the tabletop.

“My friend…” Alric found himself saying.

He couldn’t let his men see any weakness in him.

Alric quickly shut the door behind him, and wept.

“Do it again,” someone said.

Alric glanced up in shock. A strange man stood there, next to the table. He was clad in casual black clothes, and had the face of a kid barely out of his teens. He was lean, with features that were almost gaunt, as if merely existing in this universe had taken a lot out of him. But those eyes belied his true age, eyes that were haunted by the weight of countless years. Likely, the youthful appearance was the result of rejuvenetics.

Alric pointed his pistol at the young man and squeezed the trigger. The plasma bolt passed right through him and struck the wall behind.

A hologram?

“What do you want?” Alric said.

“Do it again,” the man repeated.

“I know you…” Alric said. “You’re…”

“The Bender of Worlds,” the man said.

“Impossible…” Alric said.

“I’m in your mind,” the Bender of Worlds said. “Everything is possible, here.”

Alric looked at the body of Frederick. “This was before I had Mind Shape. Before the creodenti. I had no choice. I did this to save humanity.”

“You tell yourself that your reasons were noble,” the Bender of Worlds said. “And yet I see the truth in your heart. You desired power. That’s why you killed him. That’s why you took control. And after you destroyed the dweller homeworld, you set yourself up as dictator.”

Alric shook his head. “I only wanted to help humanity.”

“Yes, you keep saying that,” Tane said. “Now, let’s do this again. And again. A thousand times. You will relive this moment forever.”

“No…” Alric said.

And then he was standing before the door to the bunker once more. The robots cut through, and killed the defenders inside. Alric walked in and entered the conference room.

“So this is what it comes to, my old friend?” Frederick said sadly.

Alric raised his pistol and fired, scattering the rear wall with the innards of his kindest and most loyal friend. He dropped to his knees and wept.

“Again,” the Bender of Worlds said.

The memory looped back. Alric squeezed the trigger.

“Again.”

Alric lost track of the number of times he relived that one moment in time. A hundred times. A thousand. Ten thousand.

It was the worst moment of his life. The moment of his greatest guilt. In later years, he told himself that it was also the best moment… because it led to his, and humanity’s, greatest triumph. They were saved from the threat of the dwellers. What was the cost of one life for all of that? It was truly the moment that had defined his rule for the next twenty years.

And yet as it replayed over and over before his eyes, the guilt and shame began to overwhelm any feelings of triumph he might have had. Because in his heart, he knew the Bender of Worlds was right.

Alric had killed his best friend not merely to save humanity, but because he wanted Frederick’s power.

As he saw the insides of his friend smear the wall for the ten thousandth time, at last Alric broke.

30

Tane gazed intently at Alric. The concentric waves that joined them had become stronger in intensity, fully visible all along the length of the translucent tube they formed; those waves had also reversed direction some time ago, traveling from Alric’s head and into Tane instead of vice versa.

“Make it stop,” the Paramount Leader said. “Please.”

But Tane did not.

Finally Alric fell to his knees and his features grew slack. “Stop…”

Those accompanying Alric exchanged confused glances; it was obvious they were preparing to fire at Tane. He had to wrap this up quickly.

Thankfully, the invisible vise that held Tane fell away a moment later. He knew because he staggered slightly. He bent one of his legs experimentally, keeping an eye on Alric’s troops the whole time: he had to be careful not to make any sudden movements.

“I killed my best friend,” Alric was muttering. “My best friend.”

Tell them to stand down, Tane instructed the Paramount Leader.

“Stand down,” Alric said tonelessly.

The Essence warriors exchanged looks, then lowered their swords. The scepters followed suit, dropping the aim of their rifles, and the mechs retracted their laser turrets.

You will follow me, going forward, Tane told the Paramount Leader over their mental link. You will obey my every command.

Alric nodded slowly. Drool trickled down his slack lower lip.

The words of Tiberius echoed in Tane’s mind and he felt a moment of guilt.

Just because you can control, doesn’t mean you should. Sometimes it is better not to force your will upon someone, but instead strive for a more peaceful solution. A compromise.

In this case Tane couldn’t afford the luxury of a compromise. He needed the absolute, unquestioning loyalty of the Paramount Leader. The fate of the galaxy, and the entire universe, was at stake.

Tane released the source of the vibrations, and the waves ceased to emanate from the man’s mind. Alric straightened.

Tane experienced a moment of doubt. He had believed his mental commands had wormed deep enough into Alric’s mind to remain there forever. But he could be wrong. Alric might no longer be in his control. Unfortunately, Tane could’t hang onto those vibrations forever. He already felt weariness sweeping over him in waves after releasing the Mind link, and it was all he could do not to buckle where he stood.

“All my life I toiled to hold on to my position of power,” Alric said. “Killing my best friend. Then striking a deal with the creodenti. And in one fell swoop, you have taken everything away.”

“You may still rule,” Tane said. “I ask only that you follow me.” He was testing if he still had mastery over the man.

Alric exhaled, and bowed his head. “I obey your every command.”

The surviving Mancer gasped. “But Leader, you can’t—”

“We are his, now,” Alric snapped at the man.

Tane regarded the Mancer coldly. “The boundaries between universes weaken. Stars are being snatched from systems. You must follow me. There is no other option. I need the TSN to work with me, not hunt me.”

In answer, the Mancer scowled. But then he dropped his gaze. “I serve and obey.”

“He is the Fundamental,” a disembodied voice boomed. “He instinctively knows how to invert the Gray work used against him.”

Tane glanced around, searching for the source of the voice, but saw no one.

“Yes, there is no other explanation,” another booming voice intoned.

When neither the Paramount Leader nor his minions seemed concerned, Tane realized he was the only one hearing the words. They were being delivered telepathically to his mind.

“He is the Fundamental,” another said. “The Banished One was right.”

“Should we kill him? As the Banished One wished?”

“No. The Fundamental must fulfill his destiny.”

“He could destroy us all.”

“Yes.”

“Do we reveal the Ruin?”

“We have no choice. If he is to fulfill his destiny, he will need the Ruin.”

“Who are you?” Tane said.

The Mancers and Essence warriors in front of Tane exchanged confused looks, trying to figure out who he was talking to.

Tane received a sharing request from an unknown ID. He didn’t accept.

“We are the creodenti,” a voice said. “Accept.”

Tane decided it was probably best to hold off for now.

“Contained within this request is the knowledge to Siphon the Gray Essence,” another voice said. “We cannot give you the muscle memory, as we have no technical understanding of your nanotech. You will have to practice, using what is taught within the communications packet. You have the ability inside of you: learn to Siphon the Gray, as you will need it against the Z’Antamaraan.”

“How can I defeat them?” Tane asked. “Do you know?”

Once more the surrounding individuals gave him odd looks, including Alric.

“Accept, and we will tell you,” the voice responded.

Still Tane hesitated.

The tarmac shook—the glowing material began to bulge outward. Gray shockwaves, similar to those emerging from Tane’s own body, began to emanate from the surface.

Tane continued to touch both the hull above him and the Dark Artifact beside him, in case he needed to act.

The Paramount Leader and his men meanwhile backed away as a rock creature took shape, similar to the entity Tane had met in the Khaeota. White and blue veins spidered across the gray rock that composed its flesh. A torso, arms, and a head took shape, however unlike the Khaeota entity, whose lower body had been encased in metal, this creature had no lower body: its torso merged directly with the tarmac.

When it finished taking shape, it towered over Tane, coming in at about twice as tall as him. It glowed like the surrounding tarmac, and was surrounded by ripples of gray that emanated from its skin.

“Accept,” the creature commanded.

Tane finally accepted the sharing request. As promised, he received a digital document. In it were instructions on how to access the Gray Essence. He skimmed over it, and knew right away it would probably take weeks of practice, if not longer. Apparently, the creodenti lived inside the sub-universe formed between the atoms composing rocks and other minerals. The Gray Essence, meanwhile, came from the energy generated within those rocks. That would explain the glow of all things stone here. Apparently the universe he resided inside right now was an intermediary one between that of the creodenti and Umanitar, as no human could enter the sub-universe and live.

“There’s nothing here pertaining to the Z’Antamaraan,” Tane said.

“Yes,” a voice said in his mind. “We will now impart the Ruin. Listen carefully.”

And then they told him how to defeat the Z’Antamaraan. The words continued to form within his mind, for him alone to hear.

Tane listened in both shock and wonder. Yes, this knowledge could definitely destroy the galaxy.

But also save it.

When the creodenti finished, a gray rip in the fabric of spacetime appeared next to the Mosaic.

“Follow me,” Tane told Alric and his minions.

Tane lowered his hand from the hull above him, and commanded the Dark Artifact to shrink, placing it in his storage pouch. Then he stepped down off the ramp and entered the spacetime tear.

Tane emerged into the Umanitar. He knew because he was still standing on the same platform, except the tarmac no longer glowed, and gray shockwaves had ceased to expand from his body. The sky had returned to its natural color.

The Mosaic was gone—no doubt a larger ship had arrived to tow it away, as he had expected. That it had still existed in the creodenti universe told him that he was right about the snapshot of Umanitar lagging. Whether or not the creodenti themselves had any hand in that, he didn’t know.

There were also soldiers here—more Mancers, warriors, and scepters. They immediately pointed their weapons at Tane, or in the case of the Mancers, their staffs.

Alric and the others emerged from the rip in spacetime behind him.

“Stand down,” Alric told the soldiers.

The men obeyed.

The rip in spacetime sealed and Tane allowed the Paramount Leader to pick out five men to accompany them, and then Tane led the way to the palace. Remembering the tiny dart that had struck his illusion earlier, Tane kept his shield active, but turned off autogating mode so that the energy field would protect him from slower moving projectile weapons, such as that dart. He would have to be very careful of assassins, going forward.

Along the way Tane checked his notifications. He wasn’t expecting to see any level ups, because he knew it would get harder to level as he became more advanced, and he hadn’t really vanquished enough opponents to justify any increases. But what he saw still floored him.

Class change: your class is now Bender of Worlds.

Bender of Worlds. So even his chip recognized him for who he was, now. He disabled his ID spoofing. It was time to let the galaxy know who he was.

As he entered the main hall and made his way to the throne room, he asked Alric: “Where are my friends? And the dweller that came with me?”

Alric’s eyes defocused. Then he looked at Tane. “My assistant tells me they’re safe. In holding cells.”

“Release them,” Tane said. “And have them escorted to the throne room. They are to be allowed all of their equipment, including weapons.”

Alric inclined his head. “It will be done.”

When Tane entered the throne room, none of the Essence warriors and other soldiers trained their weapons on him, but kept them firmly pointed toward the floor. Alric must have radioed ahead to warn them.

When he reached the throne, Tane turned around to face the gathered throng, courtiers and soldiers alike.

Before he could speak, the Paramount Leader knelt before him. “I, Alric Graim Maelbane, Supreme Paramount Leader of the Thorran Star Navy, declare my allegiance and undying servitude to Tane Ganeth, Bender of Worlds and Wearer of the Bone Crown.”

Shocked whispers rippled throughout the gathered ranks. He saw fear in the eyes of many of them. And in others, awe.

“All of the starships and resources of the Thorran Star Navy are at your disposal,” the Paramount Leader continued. “Henceforth I, and the TSN, exist only to serve you.” Alric glanced up to survey the shocked faces around him. “Kneel before the Bender of Worlds.”

Only a few people and robots nearby complied.

“Kneel!” Alric said more forcibly.

Throughout the room, men and women, soldiers and courtiers, knelt. Tane noted the faces of those who were the last to do so. He would likely have to watch them, in the future.

“All hail Tane Ganeth, Bender of Worlds!” someone said behind him.

“ALL HAIL TANE GANETH, BENDER OF WORLDS!” the gathered throng answered as one.

Tane glanced at the man who had voiced the call. He realized it was Nelson, kneeling beside the throne. For some reason the man was looking triumphantly at the female synthetic beside him.

Sinive, Nebb, Gia, Chase, and G’allanthamas appeared at the entrance to the room.

Sinive broke free of her escort and ran to him. When she reached him, she seemed uncertain of what to do, seeing as how everyone else was kneeling. She abruptly dropped to one knee as well.

Tane deactivated his shield to pull her to her feet.

“You never kneel,” he said quietly. He wanted to hold her close, but that was for later. Instead, he gently shoved her, and she took the hint, giving him room to reactivate his shield. She did likewise, standing at his side.

Tane surveyed the crowd around him. Those whose eyes he met quickly glanced down. Yes, there was more fear here than awe. He wasn’t sure if he should rectify that. Perhaps it was better that they were afraid of him.

He focused on Sinive. There was more than a little fear in her own eyes. He hoped that look didn’t stay there: he disliked it, especially on her.

“I didn’t want this,” Tane said, addressing not just her, but everyone who had gathered. “I never wanted it. But it’s necessary for what comes.” He cleared his throat. “Rise to your feet. Gather your admirals. Prepare your ships. The Bender of Worlds has need of you. Tomorrow, we invade the Umbra. The dwellers will kneel to me before we are done.”

There was stunned silence among the ranks. Then someone started a battle cry.

“Ganeth!” one of the courtiers said. “Ganeth the Conquerer!”

It was quickly picked up by the gathered army. “GANETH THE CONQUERER!”

Alric himself repeated the cry, perhaps loudest of them all. In his eyes there was a wild, fervent look, as though out of all the troops, the Paramount Leader himself was the most eager to obey. As well he should be.

Tane glanced at Sinive. The fear was gone, replaced by disapproval, but also respect. Loving respect.

As the war cries intensified, Tane knew that no mattered what happened, she would remain at his side throughout it all.

And that was all that mattered.

Because he didn’t think he could do this without her.

We have a universe to save.

Thank you very much for reading!

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Tane Ganeth

Tane’s current attributes, skills, and equipment

Attributes

Name: Tane Ganeth

Race: Human

Level: 14

Class: Bender of Worlds

Strength: 10

Intelligence: 16 (29 with Beam Hilt I, Chrysalium Star Rings, Feral Necklace, Finger of Malevolence, and Nova Bracelet I equipped)

Dexterity: 14

Endurance: 24 (45 with Beam Hilt I, Chrysalium Star Rings, and Endurance Necklace I equipped)

Charisma: 9

Armor Rating:

- 37 (with Armored Robe I reduced for layering underneath Spacesuit II; and Nova Bracelet I, Osmium Gauntlets I, and A3 Personal Shield system equipped)

or

- 43 (with Armored Robe I alone; and Nova Bracelet I, Osmium Gauntlets I, and A3 Personal Shield system equipped)

Skills

Bargaining. Level 0.

Chip Database Upgrade. Level 2.

Crop Gene Splicing. Level 2.

Cycling. Level 2.

Electrical Engineering. Level 1.

Endurance Running. Level 1.

ID Spoofing. Level 1.

Kissing. Level 0.

Learning. Level 3.

Mechanical Engineering. Level 2.

Mountain Climbing. Level 1.

Piano. Level 2.

Rake Fighting. Level 0.

Sex Mastery. Level 0.

Sharpshooting. Level 2.

Social Skills. Level 2.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Pilot (Small Craft). Level 1.

Essence Skills

Chrysalium Siphoning Level 3.

Darcanium Siphoning. Level 2.

Dark Artifact Control. Level 1.

Dark Siphoning. Level 2.

Dark and White Mixing. Level 3.

Emerald Siphoning. Level 2.

Essence Link. Level 0.

Essence Sight. Level 3.

White Beam Hilt Control. Level 3.

— Blade Manipulation. Level 1.

— Essence Sheath. Level 1.

White Siphoning. Level 2.

White Essence Specific

White Siphoning Level 1 Essenceworks:

Air Current. Level 2.

Essence Missile. Level 3.

Persistent Flame. Level 1.

White Siphoning Level 2 Essenceworks:

Wound Healing. Level 2.

Light Glove. Level 1.

Dark Essence Specific

Dark Siphoning Level 1 Essenceworks:

Night Vision. Level 1. Creation time: 14 seconds.

Melt Metal. Level 1. Creation time: 57 seconds.

Fingers of Ruin. Level 2. Creation time: 55 seconds.

Dark and White Essence Specific

Dark and White Mixing Level 1 Essenceworks:

Repel Nanotech. Level 1. Creation time: 2 minutes.

Infuse Oxygen. Level 1. Creation time: 30 seconds.

Emerald Essence Specific

Emerald Siphoning Level 1 Essenceworks:

Revive. Level 1.

Summon Grazer. Level 1.

Emerald Siphoning Level 2 Essenceworks:

Illusion. Level 1.

Lightning Storm. Level 1.

Equipment

- A3 Personal Shield System

- Blur cap

- Armored Robe I

- Basic outfit.

- Beam Hilt I (White Beam Hilt)

- C’havar Beam Hilt (Dark Beam Hilt)

- 5x Chrysalium Star Ring I

- D18 smart targeting plasma rifle.

- Endurance Necklace I (Epic)

- Feral Necklace (Epic)

- Finger of Malevolence (Legendary)

- Harness with 2 incendiary grenades.

- Nova Bracelet I

- Osmium Gauntlets I

- Spacesuit II

- Traveler’s Delight (Personal Storage Device I). Capacity: 3/10. Items: Suitcase of clothes, Sigma 231 Dark Artifact

White Essenceworks

List of publicly available White Essenceworks

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 1.

Shapist:

Star Light. Positions a light globe in the immediate area; the globe follows the Essenceworker. Higher levels allow one to choose different wavelengths, from infrared to ultraviolet, and to place the globe farther away. Stamina drain: low for short durations.

Silence Cage. Envelops an area in silence, preventing sound from entering or leaving. Higher levels offer a greater area of effect. Stamina drain: low for short durations.

Warmancer, ranged:

Air Current. Launch a gust of air. Strength of gust increases at higher levels, or when Siphoning through Chrysalium. Ineffective against energy shields until level 3. Stamina drain: low to high, depending on gust strength.

Essence Missile. Launch a missile of pure Essence at an opponent. Energy shields offer no defense. Stamina drain: medium to high, depending on strength of missile launched.

Persistent Flame. Create a persistent flame in the palm of your hand. At higher levels, can be used to burn objects. Ineffective against energy shields. Stamina drain: low to high, depending on flame strength and duration.

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Essence Trap. Create a small trap on an object such as a door or vault that detonates when the object is opened. Higher levels inflict more damage. Stamina drain: medium.

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 2.

Shapist:

Blur features. Hide your face from the facial recognition algorithms in cameras by applying infrared light globes around one’s features. At higher levels, you can affect other individuals, and also change the shape of your face on the visual band as well. And at the highest levels, you can affect larger objects such as small shuttles, allowing you to blur the thermal and visual signatures, effectively hiding the craft from detection by passive sensors. Stamina drain: medium to extremely high, depending on object size.

Healer:

Wound healing. Heals wounds on one subject. At higher levels, major wounds can be healed. Stamina drain: high. Note: requires physical contact with the subject.

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Light glove. Your hand becomes coated in a glove of white Essence, allowing you to punch through shields, hitting any armor beyond. Stamina drain: medium for short durations.

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 3.

Distorter:

Distortion tunnel. Create a distortion tunnel to jump from one point to another. At higher levels, the range and size of the tunnel increase. Jump points must be within line of sight. Cannot be used as a weapon or breach tool: distortion tunnels will not open over solids such as bulkheads or human beings. Note: knowledge of this skill is not needed to operate a starship jump chamber, as the operator merely Siphons while the AI aboard the starship handles the actual creation. As such, Essence Jump Chamber Control is not considered a White Essence Skill. Stamina drain: high.

Shapist:

Public profile masking. Alter your public profile in realtime to fool customs and other officials. Stamina drain: low for short durations.

Speed boost. Momentarily boost your speed, or the speed of another. Stamina drain: low.

Warmancer, ranged:

Telekinesis. Remotely manipulate objects. Stamina drain: low to high, depending on range and size of object to be manipulated.

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Deflect. Deflect incoming works of pure Essence, including Essence Missiles. As an added bonus, starting at level three, it also deflects standard laser beams and plasma bolts. At still higher levels, it deflects explosions and shrapnel as well. Stamina drain: medium.

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 4.

Distorter:

Distortion tunnel to beacon. Open a distortion tunnel to an object previously marked with a beacon. The range you can be away from the beacon increases at higher levels, or if Siphoning more Essence via Chrysalium. Only one object can be marked with a beacon at any given time. Stamina drain: medium to extremely high, depending on range to beacon.

Shapist:

Stamina transfer. Use to steal or transfer stamina to or from another. Range increases at higher skill levels. From levels 4 and above, can also be used to put subjects to sleep. Stamina increases upon a successful drain. Upon failure, stamina drain is medium.

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Disrupt Essence. Prevent an enemy from creating an Essencework for a short period of time. Must be next to the enemy at low levels. At higher levels, the range increases, as does the time period. Stamina drain: medium to high, depending on time period.

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 5.

Shapist:

Reveal Surveillance. Allows the Essenceworker to search for hidden surveillance, tracking devices, or traps. At high levels, can be cast over a larger radius, and can penetrate the human body to search for trackers. Stamina drain: medium.

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Paralyze enemy. Momentarily paralyze an opponent at close range. Stamina drain: medium.

Warmancer, ranged:

Forked Lightning. Sends multiple streams of energy at a group of foes. Range, damage, and number of foes targeted increases at higher levels. Energy shields offer no defense. Stamina drain: high.

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 6.

Shapist:

Deactivate. Use to deactivate individual weapons, traps, and surveillance devices. At higher levels, can be used to safely destroy a tracker hidden inside a human body, and to disable robots. Stamina drain: varies depending on the size of the object to be deactivated. For something like a tracker embedded in a human body, the drain is tiny. For a full-sized robot, medium.

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Invisibility. Become invisible to enemies for short periods of time. At higher levels, that period increases. Note: you become visible during attacks. Stamina drain: medium.

Essenceworks available to White Siphoning, Level 7.

Distorter:

Create Beacon. Mark an object with a beacon. Once marked, the Essenceworker can open a tunnel to the immediate vicinity of that object. Only one object can be marked with a beacon by the Essenceworker at any given time. Stamina drain: extremely high.

Healer:

Mass wound healing. Heals wounds on multiple subjects. The higher the level, the more subjects healed, and the greater the healing effect. Physical contact with subjects is not required, but a healing bonus is applied to any subjects the Essenceworker physically touches. Stamina drain: extremely high.

Shapist:

Mass Deactivate. Use to deactivate multiple weapons and traps in a given area of effect. At higher levels, AOE increases, and the Essenceworker can selectively omit items to deactivate, allowing the weapons of one’s companions to remain unaffected. Stamina drain: extremely high.

Essence Imbuement. Imbue an object with the Essence, so that it grants the bearer extra abilities while equipped. More powerful imbuements are available at higher levels in this Branchwork. Stamina drain: extremely high (one-time cost during creation).

Warmancer, hand-to-hand:

Shove. Forces an enemy group away from the Essenceworker, regardless of whether they have energy shields. Area of effect, and actual shove distance increase with level. Stun upgrade available at level three—shoved enemies are stunned. Fire upgrade available at level six—shoved enemies are lit on fire. Hidden upgrade available at level ten. Stamina drain: medium to high.

Warmancer, ranged:

Mass Telekinesis. Remotely manipulate several objects. Stamina drain: high to very high, depending on range, size, and number of objects to be manipulated.

Dark Essenceworks

List of Dark Essenceworks passed down to Tane from Tiberius Tribulantes

These works can be created well ahead of their intended use. Once created, a Dark Essencework can be held indefinitely for little stamina cost, and released at leisure. You may only hold in reserve as many works as your current overall Dark Essence Siphoning level.

Higher levels in each Essencework listed below reduce the individual creation time.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 1.

Imprint Location: Sigma 231, Vantaar system. Universal Polar Coordinates: -12.92568738, 179.67468954.

Builder:

Night Vision. Allows the wielder to see in the dark. At higher levels, the ability lasts longer and you can see farther. Current range and duration: 20 meters, 10 minutes. Stamina drain: low. Creation time: 15 seconds.

Amaranth:

Melt Metal. With this ability, you can selectively melt away metal objects within the work’s area of effect, including weapons, while preserving the metal items of your companions. At higher levels, the area of effect increases, as does the size of the objects that can be melted. Works through energy shields. Current AOE: 3 meters. Stamina drain: medium. Creation time: 60 seconds.

Fingers of Ruin. Sends dark fingers of unreality at a single opponent; black veins grow outward from the impact site, veins that crack open to wound the target. At higher levels, the damage increases. Pierces energy shields. Stamina drain: medium. Creation time: 60 seconds.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 2.

Imprint Location: Septes IV, Tanori System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 45.24621455, -134.57892352.

Builder:

Convert kraal. Can be used to convert a kraal into the dark energy store known as the Dirac that kraals and dwellers feed upon. While the resulting Dirac is not particularly edible for a human being, it can be useful as a diversionary tactic when pursued by a herd of kraals, causing the aliens to break off the pursuit to feed if they are hungry enough. Or the resultant Dirac can simply be collected for resale back in the Umanitar—humanity’s universe. At higher levels, multiple kraals can be converted. Stamina drain: medium. Creation time: two minutes.

Blur body. Hide your form from any facial recognition and thermal detection algorithms in cameras and sensors by applying a special cloud of darkness around your body. Also successfully subverts LIDAR and echolocation. At higher levels, it can be applied to multiple targets at once. Useful when traveling at night. Stamina drain: medium to high, depending on number of targets. Creation time: four minutes per target.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 3.

Imprint Location: Septes IV, Tanori System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 172.87389256, 39.54689674.

Builder:

ID masking. Creates a magnetic resonance compatible with dweller chip readers, simulating the dweller equivalent of Public Profiles. Useful when used in conjunction with Blur Body to fool dweller AIs. Stamina drain: low for short durations. Creation time: three minutes per target.

Amaranth:

Dark Hand. Use the Essence to manipulate, crush, etc. Similar to White Essence Telekinesis ability. Stamina drain: medium. Creation time: two minutes.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 4.

Imprint Location: Chanis 12, Serepte System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 145.21424655, 38.92357852.

Builder:

Distortion tunnel. Create a distortion tunnel to jump from one point to another. At higher levels, the range and size of the tunnel increase. Jump points must be within line of sight. Cannot be used as a weapon or breach tool: distortion tunnels will not open over solids such as bulkheads or human beings. Note: knowledge of this skill is not needed to operate a starship jump chamber, as the operator merely Siphons while the AI aboard the starship handles the actual creation. As such, Starship Jump Chamber is not considered a Dark Essence Skill. Stamina drain: high. Creation time: five minutes.

Amaranth:

Deflect. Creates a field that deflects incoming works of pure Essence, including Fingers of Ruin. Also deflects standard laser beams and plasma bolts, and at higher levels explosions and shrapnel. The length of time the field remains in place depends on the level. At higher levels, the diameter of the field can also be expanded to include others nearby. Note: will only partially deflect higher-level works, reducing their intensity. Stamina drain: medium. Creation time: two minutes.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 5.

Imprint Location: Chanis 12, Serepte System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 89.42215546, -5.57892357.

Builder:

Distortion tunnel to beacon. Open a distortion tunnel to an object previously marked with a beacon. The range you can be away from the beacon increases at higher levels, or if Siphoning more Essence via Darcanium. Only one object can be marked with a beacon at any given time. Stamina drain: medium to extremely high, depending on range to beacon. Creation time: ten minutes.

Amaranth:

Sow Confusion. A concentrated mind blast that allows you to confuse a foe, causing it to attack its comrades (it will continue assaulting you if no other opponents are nearby). At higher levels, you can confuse more than one opponent. Lasts thirty seconds at level one. Won’t work on stronger-willed targets, such as other Essenceworkers. Stamina drain: medium to high, depending on number of kraals controlled and their level (a large stamina hit is taken during creation, and a smaller one when the Essencework is released). Creation time: twenty minutes.

Disrupt. Prevent an enemy from creating an Essencework for a short period of time. Must be next to the enemy at low levels. At higher levels, the range increases, as does the time period. Stamina drain: medium to high, depending on range. Creation time: two minutes.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 6.

Imprint Location: Chanis 12, Serepte System. Universal Polar Coordinates: -167.14524655, 21.97852352.

Amaranth:

Control Kraal. Allows you to control a kraal. At higher levels, you can control more powerful kraals, or many weaker kraals. Lasts until the kraal dies, or you release it from your control. Note: while it is more reliable than Sow Confusion, it can only be used in the Umbra, where kraals exist. Stamina drain: high to extremely high, depending on number of kraals controlled and their level (a large stamina hit is taken during creation, and a smaller one when the Essencework is released). Creation time: twenty minutes.

Protective Environment. Surround yourself with a protective environment. Allows you to exist in the void, or incompatible atmospheres, without a spacesuit or pressurized battle armor. Initially lasts for two hours, though at higher levels the duration is longer. Stamina drain: medium (a small stamina hit is continually taken thereafter for the duration the environment is active). Creation time: twenty minutes.

Essenceworks available to Dark Siphoning, Level 7.

Imprint Location: Metieus Prime, Anulis System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 63.46451452, 123.85239725.

Builder:

Create Beacon. Mark an object with a beacon. Once marked, the Essenceworker can open a tunnel to the immediate vicinity of that object. Only one object can be marked with a beacon at any given time. Stamina drain: extremely high. Creation time: one hour.

Amaranth:

Renewal. A way to reinvigorate one’s body. Requires drawing the Dark Essence through a large piece of Darcanium. Cannot be used within an Essence Link. Stamina drain: high. Creation time: 5 minutes, though the age-reversing effects become apparent within the first thirty seconds.

Dark and White Essenceworks

List of known Dark and White Mixing Essenceworks passed down to Tane from Tiberius Tribulantes

Available only to those rare human individuals who can Siphon both the White and Dark Essence. Such as you, Bender of Worlds.

Because of the time required to create a work of the Dark, the combined works are delayed for however long it takes to create the Dark portion. The White Essence must be added in while the Dark work forms. Because White Essence cannot be held in reserve, when the combined work is completed, it must be released immediately.

Higher levels in each work listed below reduce the creation time.

Note: the Essencework lists for levels two through six are currently locked, and will be revealed once the associated dark artifacts are accessed.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 1.

Imprint Location: Kharikhan V, Abakan System. Universal Polar Coordinates: -109.67251482, -3.72439967.

Repel Nanotech. While active, prevents nanotech from attaching to your cerebral cortex and motor control centers, so that if an enemy such as a dweller or human injects controlling nanotech, a control chip will never form. At level one, this “repel” effect remains active a full minute after creation. The work will also remove any existing control chips formed by nanotech that have been previously injected. The removal is selective, leaving other helpful chips in place. Stamina drain: medium. Creation time: two minutes. Note: this work can also be used on another subject, however physical contact is required between the Essenceworker and the recipient.

Infuse Oxygen. Infuses a ten cubic-meter volume with oxygen. The rectangular volume can be centered around you, or positioned so that the volume begins up to one meter anywhere around you. At higher levels, a bigger volume can be created, and it can be moved farther away. Stamina drain: low. Creation time: thirty seconds.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 2.

Imprint Location: Neomalgam, Tavoc System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 16.78935482, -23.87839274.

Contents hidden until unlocked.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 3.

Imprint Location: Neomalgam, Tavoc System. Universal Polar Coordinates: -74.68626482, 101.04554967.

Contents hidden until unlocked.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 4.

Imprint Location: Neomalgam, Tavoc System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 3.30911788, 91.35927256.

Contents hidden until unlocked.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 5.

Imprint Location: Epsilon Kaitos, Xochiquetzal System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 45.57212165,-132.13560145.

Contents hidden until unlocked.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 6.

Imprint Location: Delta Kaitos, Xochiquetzal System. Universal Polar Coordinates: 12.14620124, 169.52910729.

Contents hidden until unlocked.

Essenceworks available to Dark and White Mixing, Level 7.

Imprint Location: Roma II, New Capri System. Universal Polar Coordinates: -63.52310177, -54.36516174.

Inter-dimensional Distortion Tunnel. The ability to travel back and forth between Umanitar—humanity’s universe—and the Umbra. You and a nearby circle of friends are brought back to the same place in Umanitar as you exist in the Umbra, and vice versa. Stamina requirements: extremely high. Creation time: 10 minutes.

Essence Reservoir Creation. The ability to create an Essence reservoir and apply an Essencework of your choice to it, either White, Dark, or a combination of both. Accessible upon touch to anyone with the skill to siphon both White and Dark (i.e.: essentially only you). Stamina requirements: extremely high. Creation time: 1 hour, plus the time necessary to form the Essencework to trigger.

Emerald Essenceworks

Emerald Siphoning Essenceworks

These works are created from the electrical Essence drawn from the universe known as Khaeota. Each work of this Synthate, or “Emerald” Essence, evokes a massive cost on stamina, and as such, it is recommended that only one particular Emerald work be used in a given Siphoning interval. When you have rested fully, then you may create another work.

Also note that the aforementioned stamina drain is apparent only upon the closing of the Essence veil. As such, while it might be tempting to create more works, since you will feel fine, there is a good chance you will destroy yourself.

Higher levels in each Essencework listed below increase the potency of the particular work, but at greater stamina cost.

Emerald Siphoning Level 1 Essenceworks.

Revive. Bring back the dead. Can be used once per entity, as the spiritual bonds become stretched too thin after the first raising. If a resurrected entity falls again at some later point, their death will be permanent.

This work also opens gateways to multiple higher dimensions, attracting beings that feed on the life forces of the living. These beings, sometimes commensurate in power to the fallen but usually much stronger, will tag along for the ride and attempt to feed on the life force of the reviving entity before his or her energy can be fully bound to the body. You will have to fend them off using all means available to you. Lose, and the death of the one you are trying to revive becomes permanent.

Note that a larger than normal source of the Emerald Essence must be employed. This means you cannot use something like a bone staff—instead, you will likely require a fully intact skeleton.

However as you increase this work’s level, you can revive your allies with smaller pieces of bone. However, you must also deal with more powerful life force feeders.

Summon Grazer. Summons the grazer associated with the bone or skeleton you are Siphoning the Emerald Essence from. This will be the same grazer who in life had that bone or skeleton physically inside of it.

The grazer will assume its original shape as pure energy. The being cannot be harmed by plasma bolts, laser beams, or blunt force weapons. Only the Essence, or creatures of similar energy, can deal any sort of damage.

At higher levels, the grazer will stay with you for longer periods of time. At level one, the grazer will only remain in your universe for five minutes.

Emerald Siphoning Level 2 Essenceworks.

Illusion. With this ability, you can make an object as large as an entire starship appear to be something else entirely. You can also change your appearance, and that of your friends. The effect lasts for one hour. Higher levels increase the duration.

Lightning Storm. Attack a group of foes with green lightning rained down from the sky. Higher levels increase the damage and area of effect.

Levels 3 and above are locked until the appropriate base Emerald Siphoning level is attained.

Skills

Partial list of publicly available skills

General:

Chip database upgrade. Learn what they are hiding from you! Identify most weapon types and human classes, in addition to some alien. Level 2 will allow you to ID all known alien and weapon types. Level 3 IDs all known alien ship types.

Detect trap. The thief’s specialty! Useful when disarming traps in storage vaults and containers. Also provides a chance to detect any traps hidden in walls and floors.

Hacking. Leave your hammer at home! Break into shops, cars, low-level vaults, and more!

Hot-wire. Steal the vehicle of your dreams! Note: Not for the moral of heart. But since you’re shopping at my store, I assume your morals are probably somewhat questionable anyway.

Vehicular:

Land vehicle pilot. Learn how to drive. Required to operate land vehicles. Increasing levels provide for more aggressive driving skills.

Shuttle pilot. Let’s fly baby! Operate everything from flyer taxis to starship shuttles.

Sneak. If at first you don’t succeed, hide! Improved chance of hiding in the shadows to avoid detection. Can also sneak up on enemies without drawing attention to yourself.

Sprint. When you can’t fight an enemy, run! Increases movement speed on run.

Swimming. Never drown again! Learn the breaststroke, the front crawl, and the backstroke.

Starfighter pilot. Now you’re playing with some serious firepower. Learn how to operate starfighters; higher levels unlock a greater range of fighters.

Starship operations. Learn your way around a starship cockpit! High levels unlock different ship types.

Combat:

Battle armor. Looking to wear some battle armor? You’ll have to learn how to use it, first! Required to equip enchanted battle armor. Increasing levels improve mind-body connection between brain and armor, allowing for higher armor protection levels.

Battlefield medicine. Everyone loves a doc! Learn how to use everything available inside military grade med kits.

Cardiovascular and endocrine mastery. Don’t let that heart rate abate! Learn how to control your heart, lung, and endocrine system like a pro.

Grenadier. Kaboom! Improved bonuses to target accuracy, damage, and critical hit probability. Eligibility: all grenade types.

Mech pilot. No shoes, no mech, no service. Required to operate mech machines. Increasing levels offer more advanced fighting techniques. Different specializations available for mech types.

Mixed Martial Arts. Never lose a street fight again! Learn a mixture of Jujitsu, Karate, and Kung Fu, with emphasis on grappling techniques.

Pain Control. Be the master of your own domain! Block out most pain.

Pistoleer. Hit that ten ring! Use pistol weapons. Eligibility: laser and plasma pistols.

Sharpshooting. Kill bugs dead! Use rifles. Eligibility: laser and plasma rifles.

Small unit tactics. For those who always wanted to join the TSN but never could! Learn how to fight in a unit.

Essence:

General:

Chrysalium Forging. Make equipment out of processed Chrysalium. Higher levels are required to make weapons and armor such as beam hilt and battle dress.

Chrysalium Siphoning. Needed to Siphon the White Essence through Chrysalium.

Darcanium Siphoning. Required to Siphon the Dark Essence through Darcanium.

Dark Artifact Control. Needed to control the Dark Artifacts Tane finds scattered throughout the Umbra.

Dark Siphoning. Needed to Siphon the Dark Essence, or Arcanum.

Dark and White mixing. The ability to mix both White and Dark Essence to form a hybrid work of both universes.

Essence Sight. During Siphoning, allows you to place your perspective outside your body. At higher levels, the range increases.

Traveling Essence Sight. Allows you to dispatch Essence sight anywhere. Range determined by skill level, or amount of Essence currently Siphoning (i.e. like most Essence skills, it is boosted by Siphoning through Chrysalium)

White Essence Linking. The ability to grant another Essenceworker access to your Essence. At higher skill levels, you can accept Essence from others (the higher your level, the more people you can accept Essence from).

White Siphoning. Necessary to Siphon the White Essence, or Esoterum.

Combat:

Beam Hilt Control. Learn how to use the warmancer’s favorite weapon. Because the beam hilt can launch Essence bolts, it is favored by ranged specialists and hand-to-hand alike.

Chrysalium Sword Control. Learn how to use the warmancer’s second favorite weapon. Favored by hand-to-hand specialists.

Starship-specific:

Essence Deflector Control. Required to operate the Essence deflector aboard a starship (deflects incoming Essence lances).

Essence Disruptor Control. Necessary to operate the Essence disruptor aboard a starship (stops enemies from jumping).

Essence Jump Chamber Control. Needed for the operation of a starship’s jump chamber (allows for interstellar travel).

Essence Lance Control. A must have if you want to operate a starship’s Essence lance (fires a large lance of Essence at an enemy, capable of penetrating their energy shields).

Afterword

Please help spread the word about He Who Crosses Death by leaving a one or two sentence review. The number of reviews an ebook receives has a big impact on how well it does, so if you liked this story I'd REALLY appreciate it if you left a quick review. Anything will do, even one or two lines.

Thank you!

About the Author

USA Today bestselling author Isaac Hooke holds a degree in engineering physics, though his more unusual inventions remain fictive at this time. He is an avid hiker, cyclist, and photographer who sometimes resides in Edmonton, Alberta.

Get in touch:

isaachooke.com

isaac@isaachooke.com

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Acknowledgments

THANK YOU to my knowledgeable beta readers and advanced reviewers who helped smooth out the rough edges of the prerelease manuscript: Nicole P., Karen J, Jeremy G., Doug B., Jenny O., Amy B., Bryan O., Lezza, Noel, Anton, Spencer, Norman, Trudi, Corey, Erol, Terje, David, Charles, Walter, Lisa, Ramon, Chris, Scott, Michael, Chris, Bob, Jim, Maureen, Zane, Chuck, Shayne, Anna, Dave, Roger, Nick, Gerry, Charles, Annie, Patrick, Mike, Jeff, Lisa, Jason, Bryant, Janna, Tom, Jerry, Chris, Jim, Brandon, Kathy, Norm, Jonathan, Derek, Shawn, Judi, Eric, Rick, Bryan, Barry, Sherman, Jim, Bob, Ralph, Darren, Michael, Chris, Michael, Julie, Glenn, Rickie, Rhonda, Neil, Claude, Ski, Joe, Paul, Larry, John, Norma, Jeff, David, Brennan, Phyllis, Robert, Darren, Daniel, Montzalee, Robert, Dave, Diane, Peter, Skip, Louise, Dave, Brent, Erin, Paul, Jeremy, Dan, Garland, Sharon, Dave, Pat, Nathan, Max, Martin, Greg, David, Myles, Nancy, Ed, David, Karen, Becky, Jacob, Ben, Don, Carl, Gene, Bob, Luke, Teri, Robine, Gerald, Lee, Rich, Ken, Daniel, Chris, Al, Andy, Tim, Robert, Fred, David, Mitch, Don, Tony, Dian, Tony, John, Sandy, James, David, Pat, Gary, Jean, Bryan, William, Roy, Dave, Vincent, Tim, Richard, Kevin, George, Andrew, John, Richard, Robin, Sue, Mark, Jerry, Rodger, Rob, Byron, Ty, Mike, Gerry, Steve, Benjamin, Anna, Keith, Jeff, Josh, Herb, Bev, Simon, John, David, Greg, Larry, Timothy, Tony, Ian, Niraj, Maureen, Jim, Len, Bryan, Todd, Maria, Angela, Gerhard, Renee, Pete, Hemantkumar, Tim, Joseph, Will, David, Suzanne, Steve, Derek, Valerie, Laurence, James, Andy, Mark, Tarzy, Christina, Rick, Mike, Paula, Tim, Jim, Gal, Anthony, Ron, Dietrich, Mindy, Ben, Steve, Allen, Paddy & Penny, Troy, Marti, Herb, Jim, David, Alan, Leslie, Chuck, Dan, Perry, Chris, Rich, Rod, Trevor, Rick, Michael, Tim, Mark, Alex, John, William, Doug, Tony, David, Sam, Derek, John, Jay, Tom, Bryant, Larry, Anjanette, Gary, Travis, Jennifer, Henry, Drew, Michelle, Bob, Gregg, Billy, Jack, Lance, Sandra, Libby, Jonathan, Karl, Bruce, Clay, Gary, Sarge, Andrew, Deborah, Steve, and Curtis.

Without you all, this novel would have typos, continuity errors, and excessive lapses in realism. Thank you for helping me make this the best novel possible, and thank you for leaving the early reviews that help new readers find my books.

And of course I’d be remiss if I didn't thank my mother, father, and brothers, whose wisdom and insights have always guided me through the dark paths of the Umbra and beyond.

— Isaac Hooke

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