Crusade Across Worlds (5 page)

What you saw in the reflection is for
your knowledge only
, another princess adds.
It is your
future, your destiny, and only you can fulfill it.

“What if someone else tries to kill
Reuzkimpart?”

You know what you need to do. You know who
can fulfill the prophecy.

I nod.

It is time to retire for the evening.
Think of all you have learned and prepare yourself for tomorrow’s
test
.

I’m about to ask what happens if I don’t
complete it—if I fail—but I hold my tongue. There’s no point asking
questions if I’m meant to pass on the twelfth try, especially if
I’ve done it before. And there’s no room for doubt as I replay my
future over and over—when I kill Reuzkimpart by decapitating him
with my whip. Is that actually how it’s going to happen? But where
will it be? On Nerwolix in two weeks? Is that how this is all going
to end?

I stand and head back to my little alcove.
When I arrive, Maddox has formed from one of the walls, his bright
red eyes shining on me.

“How are you this evening, Miss Fallon?”

I fall onto the makeshift bed. “Strung
out.”

“What does the colloquialism ‘strung out’
refer to?”

“I’m stressed, Maddox. Stressed and
scared.”

“What is there to be afraid of?”

I let out a deep breath. “Oh I don’t know…
failing? Dying? All of the above?”

“To fail is only a step closer to success,
and all things must leave this world to enter the next. Both
failing and dying are stones to a greater destination.”

I raise my brow at him. “You’re a wise
little pile of rocks, aren’t you?”

“It is my purpose—to assist those in need.
In addition, I enjoy comforting you, Miss Fallon. Very rarely am I
able to meet other-worldly creatures.”

“There’s no other life forms here on
Arosin?”

“Oh, indeed there are, but this is not my
home. I travel alongside the Lost Princesses wherever my assistance
may be required.”

“Assistance how?”

“You, for example, find it comforting to
speak using your vocal cords. This is something you are used to; it
is something I can assist with as the Lost Princesses will not
speak verbally for long periods of time.”

“But I’m not supposed to speak verbally. I
need to train my channels.”

“This is true, but knowing oneself is just
as important as learning and adapting. You should not forget who
you are because you learn something new. I am here to remind you of
your human existence while you explore your ancestral blood.”

I smile. “Thanks, Maddox. Though I’m not too
sure how you remind me of earth.”

“It is the compassion I offer. I am here to
remind you of who
you
are. It is important not to forget
where you came from.”

My smile widens. Over the past twelve weeks,
Maddox has been here whenever I’ve needed him, asking me questions
about my home and Nerwolix when I wanted to talk about them.
“Thanks. I mean that.”

“Of course, Miss Fallon. Is there anything I
can do?”

“No. Think I’m just going to lay here for
awhile. It’s a big day tomorrow.”

“Indeed it is. It is the day you are going
home.”

“You really believe that?”

“Of course. You are ready,” he moves
backwards into the wall, dissolving into the red stone. “Sleep now.
I will see you tomorrow before you leave.”

I lay back, rest my head on my cushioned
hair and thread my fingers over my stomach. Crossing my ankles, I
close my eyes and inhale.

You have to kill Reuzkimpart.

Exhale.

It all depends on you
.

Inhale.

You can’t let everyone down
.

Exhale.

You have to be strong enough to do
this
.

But the look in his eye as he stormed
her—stormed me—sends a shiver through my body. He promised death
and she—I—didn’t flinch. Will I really be this brave? What if I
can’t? What if—

No.

I can’t think like that. And I need to rest.
Tomorrow is a big day. Tomorrow I have to figure out how to conquer
all five Horrops. If I do that, I can go home. If not…No. I
am
going home tomorrow. I’ll figure it out somehow. Tonight
is my last night here. I know it. Tomorrow I’ll past the test once
and for all and I’ll go home. I’ll see everyone tomorrow.

It’s only a matter of hours now.

This is your final test, Fallon. Once you
pass, you will be allowed to return and assist the Arizals in
preparation of Reuzkimpart’s invasion
.

I tug the blindfold tighter.

In order to succeed, you must trust the Way.
Trust that you are able; trust that your body and mind will know
what to do and that this will end the way you desire it. Trust that
you will succeed and you will.

I let out a breath.

You must believe it. Take what you have
learned, take the knowledge and skills you have been given and
apply it. Utilize it. Make it part of you.

Are you ready, Fallon?

I roll my shoulders back, crack my neck from
side to side and roll my shoulders again. I’ve got to get them
loose. Looser. I slept wrong the entire night and now I feel off.
Even the warm-up this morning with Maddox didn’t help. My arms are
too tight. I never fight when I’m this unadjusted, so how am I
expected to handle five when I’m barely able to manage three?
There’s just no way I can handle five separate Horrops. To even
contemplate it would mean taking them on all at once—

My eyes flash open.

Of course.

I’ve been thinking of it all wrong. I’ve
been thinking of them separately, treating each as an individual
instead of one enemy. But they’re the same. I have to use their
strength and numbers against them. I have to treat them as one.

Are you ready, Fallon?

Rolling my shoulders once more, I shift my
legs apart and focus on my stance. I concentrate on my body, on the
space it occupies and the living organisms surrounding me. A deep
breath in and I can see the sweat as it drips down a Horrop’s fang.
A deep breath out and the steady
boom-boom-boom
of the
beast’s heart rumbles through me.

This is the Way.

Sense it all.

Be part of it all.

See the entirety rather than the division.
That’s what it means to be an Arizal. Overcoming illusions of
difference, trusting in unity. It’s always been about unity.

I’m finally ready.

And it’s begun.

The five Nerwolix creatures charge me, their
red pincers crushing the ground, eagerly drawing closer. Instinct
begs me to reach for my whip, but I keep my hand at my side.

And breathe.

Just breathe
.

They’re getting close. This is normally when
I would start the attack, wrapping the whip around one of the fangs
and using another to leverage myself up. And the routine would
begin. But it’s never worked before. I have to try something
different. I force my feet still, my body motionless. Don’t move.
No matter what—don’t move. They’re closer than they’ve ever been,
less than a meter out. And the whip is still snug in my pocket
where it should be. My heart is pounding, a detonated bomb ready to
explode with every passing second.

Just a little bit more.

This is when I’d be finished with my third
Horrop and working on the last two. But I still have five left.

You know what you have to do
, I think
to myself.
Trust. Trust yourself. Trust the Way
.

They’re upon me.

Time slows and I feel the ground beneath my
feet, feel it for miles. I feel the layers of planet and the bushes
of vegetation and the vibrations from the Horrops’ pincers as they
crush into the cracked surface. I feel the tiny hairs on their
sweaty hide and the dry dust on their fangs, feel the clouds moving
and the insects buzzing and water dripping in the canyon below. I
feel it all. Everything. I am a part of it and it is a part of me.
Selecting my destination, I pick a spot just outside of the horde.
I can see it by the energy it emits and the channel I have
connecting this space to that one.

And then I let go.

Following the channel, I imagine myself in
the spot I selected, imagine the hard ground beneath my feet and
the taste of that air versus this one. I don’t feel the movement,
only the rush. The energy as I move through space. If I’ve done
this correctly, I’ll have made the jump. If not, I’ll either be
crushed to death or I will have failed.

I lift the blindfold.

Across from me, the five Horrops collide
into each other. From the impact they fall back, rocking on their
round bodies, useless.

I did it
.

I transported myself to another place and
they all took care of one another. Is that what I was supposed to
do this whole time? They were unified in attacking me—just like the
miyons were with Nhazual. But they ended up striking one another,
missing their target completely. That has to be what the Lost
Princesses meant.

Is that it? Did I pass?

Very good, Fallon
, one appears before
me.
You have done very well
.

That’s what you meant
, I say.
I
was trying to attack them one on one. But I didn’t have to lift a
finger.

You have to trust yourself that you have
the power
, the second princess appears.
That you know how to
use the power. You have to trust that you know when to act and when
to let others act
.

I’m still reeling, still in disbelief that
after twelve weeks, I finally did what I thought impossible—I
survived the five stampeding Horrops. And that means I can finally
go home!

The last princess arrives.
You have much
more to learn, but our time with you here is concluded. You will
return to the Arizals and continue practicing on your own, honing
your skills, sharpening your instincts and the trust you have in
yourself. It is the only way you will succeed.

I will. Thank you
, I turn to each of
them, but they’re gathering close to one another.
Thank you for
teaching me so much.

A crumble of red rocks sprout from the
ground and Maddox appears. He inches forward. “Job well done, Miss
Fallon. And I suppose… it is time for you to go home now.”

“I’m going to miss you, Maddox.”

“It has certainly been a pleasure. But fear
not—we will meet again soon.”

“We will?”

“The invasion is in two weeks. After that, I
am afraid things will never be the same.”

I frown. There’s despair in his tone. Grief.
But before I can let the weight of his comment sink in, the Lost
Princesses speak in unison.

Remember that what you saw was for your eyes
only. The Mother grants sight when it is needed. You know what you
must do. You know what you can do. It is merely up to you to do
it.

Three bright lights appear. No bigger than
my hand, they flutter about, and I’m able to detect tiny limbs and
wings. The Lynzees. Spiritual fairy-like creatures that guided me
to the Vermix mutations on Harrizel, and then to the Mother on
Nerwolix. They begin encircling my head and I know what that
means.

Right now?
I’m going home right
now?

You have learned what you must
. The
Lost Princesses disappear, their unified voice still echoing in my
head
. Trust yourself. Trust the Way. Be strong and you will
conquer your destiny.

Purple wind billows up from the ground. I
take one last look at the red desert, a landscape I have come to
know as home for three months, and watch as it dissolves. I’ve
waited for this. For twelve long weeks, I’ve yearned to see the
lavender clouds whirl around me, obstructing everything else.
Because it means I finally did it. I finally passed the test and my
time on Arosin is over. I let out a deep breath of relief.

I’m going home.

The lavender fog dissipates and then there
is green. Fresh, beautiful green. It’s all I can see, all around
me, blanketing the ground and sky. I blink once, taking in the
sight of the Eckles. They stand as tall as towers, blocking out the
harsh, bright sun, yellow bulbs hanging between each mossy trunk. I
inhale a hint of sweet pine and nectar. And let it out again.

I’m home.

“Hello?”

But there is nothing.

I’m not in Zinnollo. It’s too quiet to be
the booming Zingfinold metropolis, and the beach isn’t in the
visible distance either. I must be somewhere on the outskirts of
the southern terrain—maybe near the mountains? If I was good
enough, and had the power to transfer between Worlds myself, I
would have focused on Sampson’s home, or maybe one of the bridges
leading between it. But I’m not that strong yet. Transporting on
the same World has its difficulties, but at least I can manage.
Transporting
between
Worlds is on a whole different level,
one I haven’t reached. Not yet.

“Hello?” I call again and take off in a
jog.

I sweep the rounded Yulus out of the way and
pick up my speed, eager to find the others. I’ve missed not being
around them too much and now, being back here, I need to see them
so much more. Fueled by this, I break into a run, brushing past the
low-hanging bulbs until I part a curtain of Yulus and find myself
at the edge of the forest, near the southern base of the Hylas
Mountains.

Voices travel from the other side of the
hill. My heart pounds, my legs burning from running so fast but I
take off for it, unable to slow down now. We’re so close and they
don’t even know it. Who will be there? Sampson? Clarence?
Pratt?

Reid?

Could Reid be nearby? Just over this hill? I
force my legs to go faster, ignoring the pain, the excitement
almost unbearable. Reaching the top of the mound, I pause with a
breath, peering into the valley below. The green terrain slopes
into a wide, flat plain, stretching far until it reaches its
neighboring hills. In the middle of the valley, Zingfinolds,
Dofinikes and humans all move around, hustling as they go.