Ice Phoenix (16 page)

"Would it kill you, if I told you I didn't know?" chortled
Anarret. "How do I put it? It just ... talks to me."

The prince groaned. Despite his injuries, he managed to place a hand on her shoulder. "Terrana ... I know you're in there," he said softly. "Don't let her beat you."

She snarled and struck him on the face. Prince Gil Ra Im staggered backwards. "She's dead to this world! Let her wallow in her misery where she belongs!"

More ice fragments fled his body and he screamed.
Anarret sneered, her eyes cruel and unforgiving. "Cry, my prince. The next one's leaving your brain."

A large shadow
blocked out the sun and she glanced up. She barely registered the terrifying form of Dragoth before a powerful forepaw struck her on the side of her head. Anarret spun out of control, plummeting towards the lake.

Dragoth swooped beneath the prince
and caught him neatly on his back. The boy pressed himself tightly to the faar's body, and a layer of scales grew over him, shielding him from any threats while he recuperated.

The faar
sensed danger racing towards them and its eyes flashed. Braced like a skeleton rider hurtling down a frozen track, Anarret was a raging mass of flames. The air in front of her lit up into a giant fireball, and with the barest movement of her head, she directed it at the animal and its rider. Dragoth lowered his head and met the flames head on.

As the fire raged around the faar, giant silver wings swept through the flames, vanquishing them.
Anarret barely had time to blink before Dragoth appeared over her, and before she knew it his powerful jaws clamped around her waist. He shook her like a rag doll as she pummelled the side of his face. Her strength was no match for his and, unlike the prince, Dragoth's qi could not be harnessed. Instead, it disrupted Anarre
t’
s power and she could not fight back effectively.

This was the strength
of the legendary faars of Swiva. Like the ice-phoenixes, faars were born from pure energy, one hundred percent qi. They were masters over themselves, and there were not many things in Dartkala that could disrupt their qi or control them. Many people had attempted to capture a faar so they could better understand its powers, but all had failed miserably.

Dragoth finally released
Anarret, flinging her into the lake with a powerful thrust of his neck. There was a resounding splash as she fell flat on her back. He did not attempt to follow. Instead, he hovered above the water, ready to attack if she emerged. However, the water remained deceptively calm and the faar began to feel uneasy.

Prince, how are your wounds?

They are healing but will require further attention. How is the ...girl ... thing, whatever it is?

Dragoth growled.
Her silence is disturbing.

Can the real one be saved?

What makes you think that isn't the real one?

Prince
Gil Ra Im did not answer. Maybe he didn't want t
o
— Terrana evoked strange feelings in him that he was unable to understand.

Dragot
h
—

Dragoth banked a hard left, narrowly avoiding a boiling geyser as it erupted from the lake.

She's watching us. Princ
e
— there is something else in the water with her.

What is it?

The scales covering Prince Gil Ra Im drew back and he was able to lean over Dragoth's side to look down at the lake. It took him only a moment to spot it. A splash of silver cut through the water and vanished into its depths. Dragoth began rising, distancing himself and the prince from the girl hidden below.

Why are we pulling away?

That silver creature does not belong to this world. It is far more dangerous than the girl.

As they soared into the sky, Terrana huddled in a dark corner of a room, banished there by
Anarret. She clutched her head, trying to rid herself of the memory of her brother and parents. A voice reached her, pervading her subconscious, and became louder. She blinked.

Terrana.
Snap out of it.

Something inside her
stirred; the voice was familiar. It was safe.

Who are you?

Who I am doesn't matter. The concern is you.

Who am I
?
Why am I scared?

You
are Terrana Lee. Your home is on a small island in Fiji. Your family died in a fire but you survived. Now, you must learn to control your powers.

I
saw myself. She came out of me.

Your powers are consuming you. You must control them.

She's me, isn't she? Archie said I killed them! I didn't die because I killed them.

Terrana, those were your powers. They are trying to control you. Don't listen to them.

Are she and I the same? Is it true? Did I kill my family?

There was no answer.

Tell me! Did I kill my family?

When the voice spoke
again, Terrana detected restrained anger. She pulled back, suddenly more afraid of it than the darkness from which she had been hiding.

Are you such an evil child that you would have harboured thoughts of murdering your family? You were raised in a loving home.
If you harboured a single thought of hurting them, then yes, you killed them.

Terrana
trembled.
I never wanted to hurt them! I love them!

So?

I ... I didn't kill them.

Then
stop hiding, or I'll smack you so hard you'll swallow this lake.

Terrana froze. She had no wish to swallow the lake but ... she had done something similar a long time ago.

Puddy?
Is that you?

Hurry up.
The voice was fading.

Terrana panicked.
Wait! Please don't leave me!
She ran around in the darkness, desperately searching for the crack that would let her out. Finally, she glimpsed a thin blade of light and raced over, her heart beating wildly. She buried her hands into the tiny tear, forcing it to come apart. Light flooded in. A hand reached in from the other side and shoved her back.

There was no longer any trace of the benevolent voice. Instead a version of her own voice echoed through her brain.
Where do you think you're going?

The mirror image materialised and
Terrana stared at the dark face that was her own. "I'm getting out of here," she said defiantly. "And you're in my way."

"
I can't let you do that. You're a murderer who killed your family."

"
I did not kill my family. I had no reason to."

Anarret
chuckled. "No, you may not have, but I did. For years they locked me away in you, and so I killed them."

Terrana's resolve faltered
, which did not go unnoticed by her dark twin. "That's right. I killed them. I started the fire while you were sleeping. I'm the other side of you, Terrana. As I said before, we are one person. If I killed your family, then you killed your family."

She
edged forwards, pushing Terrana back into the centre of the underwater room. "That's right. Go back in there and hide. All your pain will go away. I'll take care of things on this side."

She didn't expect the fist in her face and she staggered back, hissing in surprise. Terrana circled her, fist clenched. Her brown eyes blazed fiercely.

"If I ever see you again, I'll kill you. Now get out of my way." She stepped through the rip, after pushing past the other girl. Her world was suddenly overwhelmed by rushing water. In her panic she choked on it until she realised that she was in the lake and she was almost out of air.

Her feet and hands struck out automatically, but instead of swimming to the surface, she delved deeper into the lake's depths. She had to be sure. The voice in her hea
d
— it had
felt
like Puddy. The reprimand, the threat of a smacking, the feeling of being saf
e
— she told herself it couldn't be possible. Terrana would have screamed if she could. She wasn't losing her mind, she wasn't! Puddy had abandoned her in Fijiand was probably swimming around in the great big ocean on Earth. There was no way he could have reached out to he
r
— after all, he was just a dolphin. There was no way he could be here in the lake with her. And yet, some part of her hoped desperately that he was.

Something
flashed ahead in the distance and she recognised the sleek, powerful form of a dolphin gliding through the water. Her heart nearly burst with joy and she swam harder, trying to reach him.

Puddy!
He was getting farther away from her, fading into the distance, and try as she might, she could not catch up to him. Her limbs had become dead weights, and the water was as thick and sticky as glue; she could barely move through it. Terrana could only watch as the dolphin faded from sight.
Puddy, wait!

The last of her air fled her mouth and she
drifted into the depths of the lake, her consciousness fast fading. She was drowning. As the blackness clouded her mind, she failed to notice a lithe form swimming towards her. An arm hooked around her chest, tugging her towards the surface.

When she finally broke through the surface, she felt another arm encircle her. She thought she was being crushed until she felt water spurt through her
nose and mouth. As soon as the water stopped gushing, she inhaled. Sweet air filled her empty lungs. Then, she was towed to dry land. Someone laid a coat around her and raised her into a sitting position. Electric blue eyes bored into hers. Prince Gil Ra Im was soaking wet, and he didn't look pleased about it.

"How do you feel?"

"Pu-Puddy," she mumbled.

"Who's Puddy?"

Terrana leaned forwards. "I must find him. He's in the lake."

"I think you've had enough of the lake for one day."

She giggled like a drunken person and tried to stand. "I could have told you that ages ago."

The prince reached out to steady her and she leaned into him gratefully. His face remained impassive as, without any warning, she threw up onto his chest.

The light from the myorite crystals that formed the airy and graceful chandelier fell across the elegant table that dominated the room. The table had been carved from hertian rock, a mineral similar to green marble and found only on the planet of Gratch. With its doughnut-like shape, it could accommodate up to thirty people.

The room was spacious, with bare white walls and a high ceiling. The absence of windows served as a deterrent to possible prying eyes, and no one other than the people who sat in the room knew of its existence. There was only one exit, defined by a pair of large, heavy doors marked with the emblem of the Imeldors; a circular meeting of two heads containing a dot in the centre.

Someone coughed, causing everyone else to lean back as far as they could, weaving anti-germ barriers around themselves. While some were discreet about it, others weren't. There were nine of them in the room, and more were expected.

"
You don’t have to be so paranoid," said the one who coughed, looking hurt. "It was just an itch, not some superbug." Raimus Jigahart hailed from the planet Merong. He was a tubby man, with a gut that spilled onto his thighs. He had squinty eyes and wore a moustache that was neatly parted and reached his long lobed ears — a characteristic of his race.

He was also one of the more senior Imeldors in the room, and despite his rather gelatinous appearance, he had rightly deserved the distinction of Imeldor. Rumour had it that he had single-handedly hunted down the guild assassins who had been plaguing the board members of the UWIB Corporate Banking Sector — a feat by no means insignificant, as guild assassins were some of the most powerful and craftiest weavers to exist outside of Imeldors and L-Masters.

"An itch would not have you coughing all night, Raimus!"

All heads turned to the blond woman who had spoken. Lady Fless was a striking woman in her prime, with pale green eyes and slightly feline features. She was tall and lithe, owing to the heritage passed down from two different bloodlines. Lady Fless was half Magarkan, like Headmistress Marl, and half
Cubeyon.

She was also one of the top Kampu fighters
in existence. Other than Headmistress Marl, not one person in that room had a chance of besting her in martial combat. She wore a short leather vest over a red bodysuit, and a pair of deadly-looking combat boots. Each boot looked to weigh a tonne.

"
How long have you had that itch?" Even though her voice was light and she had a hint of a smile, there was no warmth in her glittering pale eyes.

"
A week, more or less," Raimus replied cautiously.

"
With all the recent deaths, I'm somewhat surprised you haven't had it looked at," said Talinuk Ferro.

"
What do you mean?" Raimus looked mildly annoyed.

"
Jazgunda Qobambe was murdered two nights ago. Someone poisoned his roasted beetles, or didn't you know?"

Raimus scowled at Talinuk Ferro. Talinuk was Pophusian and Raimus thought
he was too smug and arrogant for his own good.

"
It's just an itchy throat," Raimus said in an icy tone. Truth be told, he had already seen a doctor and, unfortunately, he had contracted the Donkinongan jelly throat infection, which was a rather embarrassing condition caused by coming into contact with contaminated saliva. Furthermore, he had no intention of letting the others find out.

He glanced at the people in the room, his reaction to seeing them ranging between 'nice-to-see-you-again', 'couldn't-care-less' and 'you-need-a-hammer-to-brighten-up-your-face'. They were, in no particular order:

1. Quempa Pillidux - Planet Donkinong

2. Lady
Heluyon Skiss - Planet Water Loll

3. Degra Marl - Planet
Magarka

4. Theodore Drummik -
Planet Pa Gumpina

5.
Kiaten Titik - Planet Varusia

6.
Tirath Wayne - Planet Flixa

7. Lady
Kisan Fless - Cubeyon

Raimus frowned.
"Where are the others?"

"
Grandmaster Deitrux and Kuldor are with Baneyon right now," answered Lady Fless. "They're quizzing him on his attack since he's the only one who's survived the recent spate of assassinations."

"
Did he get a look at his attacker?" Raimus asked quickly.

Lady Fless shook her head.
"We'll know more once they come out."

"
That was eight days ago, wasn't it?"

The others nodded.

"What about the queen?" Talinuk Ferro asked. "Why isn't she here yet?"

"
Perhaps she didn't get the message," Master Drummik said dryly.

"
For something as important as this, she had better show up!"

No one responded to that. Talinuk Ferro hadn't been an Imeldor long enough to know how the queen worked. For once, Raimus gladly bit his tongue and hoped fervently that
Talinuk would speak in the same manner to
her
when she arrived. He would happily pay for a ringside seat just to witness the queen's reaction.

His happiness was short
lived, however, when Headmistress Marl spoke. "The queen has never been late for a meeting, Talinuk. If something is keeping her, then it is for no trivial reason. You'd do well to hide your impatience from her."

Just then, the doors opened and Baneyon walked in, flanked by two Imeldors. A long white cloak draped his shoulders, and his silver hair was pulled back into a single braid. He had
the usual mischievous glint in his eyes, and everyone knew he was all right. On his right loomed the tall and powerful Kuldor Brim, covered from head to toe in white fur. Only his face remained bare, revealing his big brown eyes, which twinkled kindly in the soft light.

The other person was none other than their leader and head of the Imeldors, Grandmaster Deitrux.
Dignified and wise, he had an imposing presence that immediately pressed the room into silence. His large, slightly protruding eyes scrutinised everyone, causing a few Imeldors to squirm. Long white hair was neatly braided and double-folded behind his head, held fast by a dark strip of cloth. He had a dark complexion, a little nose, and a wide mouth. He barely reached Baneyon’s knees.

Like Baneyon, both Kuldor and Grandmaster Deitrux wore white cloaks
. As soon as they made their way to their seats, the grandmaster placed his hands on the table and spoke.

"
We can rest assured that our young one, Imeldor Baneyon, possesses his own mind and there is no other person lurking in there. Furthermore, from Baneyon's accounts we have determined just how powerful our foe is and what can be done to fend off their attacks. Let's be thankful that our young one has returned without so much as a bruise, unlike our unfortunate peers."

There was a unified murmur as everyone quietly acknowledged Baneyon's safe return.

"Did you get a look at the attacker's face?" Master Drummik asked.

Baneyon shook his head.
"No, I didn't have time. I could only tell he or she was bipedal."

"
However, Baneyon has discovered something even more important," interrupted Kuldor. "Our nasty friend comes from a planet that we do not recognise."

"
When you say a planet we do not recognise, do you mean one that is hardly frequented by us?" asked Lady Fless.

Kuldor shook his head.
"I mean, it is a planet that has not been mapped as part of the Thirteen Sectors."

Stunned silence.
Master Drummik had to lean back in order to digest this piece of news; Raimus did just the opposite.

"
An oversight, perhaps?" added Quempa Pillidux, speaking for the first time. He was a much younger version of the grandmaster, a native of Donkinong, and also a close friend of Baneyon.

"
I believe the queen will be able to enlighten us," said the grandmaster.

"
She's not here!" Talinuk Ferro failed to hide his anger.

"
Patience, young Ferro," said the grandmaster. "Even as we speak she is entering the premises with Master Morix and Lady Anrath."

If the others were surprised, they did not reveal it. They had all been extending their senses to listen for the queen's arrival, and while some may have detected a change in the air, others did not.

"You should all know, Baneyon was not the first person to survive the assassination attempt," continued the grandmaster. "The first attempt was made on the queen's life several months ago. You were all informed that she was travelling. I'm sure most of you pondered the reason for her movements."

"
Someone was actually stupid enough to attack the queen?" blurted Tirath Wayne. He was one of the younger Imeldors and less sensitive to keeping up appearances. His two antennae twitched above his head, and his already large eyes bulged to the point of popping out. He had asked the question that everyone was thinking, but had been too embarrassed to say out loud.

"
No, someone had been
confident
enough to attack her. However, the person was not careless. The assassin had poisoned her tea before attempting to confront her," answered the grandmaster.

"
We’ve been watched for a very long time. Fortunately, the queen was able to expel the poison from her system and send the assassin running for cover. It seemed that not even the assassin was willing to confront her directly. He or she had attempted a mindslip over the queen's weakened state."

"
I can't believe the assassin attempted to poison
and
mindslip into her," said Baneyon. "How stupid is that?"

"
Well, would you want to be the unlucky person who has to slip into her mind?" added Master Drummik with a wry smile.

"
Ah, good point," replied Baneyon. "I almost feel sorry for the assassin."

Lady Fless glared at the bantering men.
"You did hear the grandmaster say the queen was approaching?"

"
It's okay, Lady Fless." Baneyon grinned. "She can't hear us yet. Perhaps this fellow might be able to provide us with some insight to her complex brain."

"
Yes, like how
not
to ask her out on a date," sniggered Master Drummik.

Lady Fless looked towards Quempa
Pillidux, who had been quiet. "Perhaps you should warn your friends to bite their tongues before they become glued to their teeth."

Quempa smiled and shook his head.
"I don't argue with idiots, Lady Fless. Too often have I been brought down to their level and then been beaten by their experience."

Raimus roared out with laughter while Baneyon flashed his friend a hurt look.

The grandmaster spoke again, bringing the room to silence. "Once the queen arrives, we shall begin our meeting. The topic of discussion, as you may all know, is the recent death of Imeldor Felix Jingo."

The great doors opened and all eyes looked up as
two people walked into the room. Master Ralph Morix led, followed by Lady Anrath. Both looked worse for wear despite holding themselves with grace and dignity. They took their places at the table while everyone remained quiet. Then the queen appeared.

She was commanding. Her startling blue eyes swept past the others as she made her way to her seat, which was beside the grandmaster. Her attire was entirely black, and she
, too, wore a cloak over her shoulders. Her dark boots rapped quietly on the floor, and when she sat, a few tendrils of dark hair escaped its bun to brush across her porcelain face.

"
Forgive our tardiness," she said. "We were being cautious in our approach." Her voice was rich and velvety.

Grandmaster Deitrux nodded.
"We shall begin then. As most of you are aware, Imeldor Felix Jingo was murdered nine days ago. His body was discovered by a close friend in an alley close to the pub he frequents. His rigor mortis state was unusual to say the least ... his knees were bent into a common bipedal sitting position such as we are doing now. The coroner concluded that he died of multiple burns to his body. Official reports will declare the same when it becomes public knowledge."

No one said anything. They knew there was more to come.

"I, on the other hand, conducted my own examination on his body and, with Kuldor’s assistance, have concluded otherwise. Our poor Master Jingo was ambushed in that alley and he never escaped it. But, unfortunately for him, he had thought otherwise — a mistake that cost him his life."

Baneyon interrupted him.
"I’m sorry, but I don’t understand how he could have thought that he had escaped that alley. Master Jingo was a master of his own art. It would have been impossible to fool him with scene weaving. He would have known what was real and what wasn't."

"
Unless, of course, he had been drugged," added the queen.