The Dragons of Decay (35 page)

“
So that's what happened,”
he said to himself. “I took Kronk's place in death.”

“
That is what happened, my
child,” came the goddess' voice sighing around him like a
gentle night breeze. “Now you see why I wished to speak with
you one last time before your final journey. Such a sacrifice
deserved to be honored.”

“
It's a shame that Kronk and
Aeris had to go home though,” he said as he turned his gaze
skyward. “Clara and the others could have used their help. And
I guess Liliana and her group will have to stay in Moscow for now. I
know that Tamara and Sebastian in London can cast Gate spells, but I
didn't tell them about the move to Florida and they can't cast Magic
Mirror spells, so they won't be able to help.”

He sighed and shook his head.

“
So many irons in the fire. I
hadn't really thought about how much I had going on at once. And now,
it's all just...gone.”

“
Yes. And perhaps the most
egregious thing of all, the elves and their battle against the brown
dragons. They are on their own now. You and the others whom you might
have brought to the battle will not be there to help them. And
without your aid, I believe that eventually the elven realm will
fall.”

Simon spun around, staring into the
night. The goddess was still nowhere to be seen.

“
Fall? But that means Daniel,
Ethmira and the others...”

“
Will die, yes. And once that
happens, the brown and red dragons will ravage the Earth like a
plague and soon after, my cousins will be free to enter your universe
and claim their prize. We, those on the side of Light, will wither
and fade into nothingness.”

“
How could you let this
happen?” Simon asked in an accusatory tone. The haze of
calmness had been ripped away and he was riddled with fear and
desperation. “I mean, you're gods! Do something!”

“
Let this happen? Child, we did
not 'let this happen'. Mortals are the instruments of destiny, not
the gods. We did what we could when we slipped a small portion of our
power into the stream of magic that our cousins are bathing your
world in. We Changed those we could so that humanity would have a
chance; a slim one, I will admit, but still, a chance to fight back
against the darkness. You, Simon O'Toole, were the pivotal piece; the
one human who was able to become a wizard among all of those who
accepted the Change. But with you gone, there is no rallying point,
no nexus. And so your people are scattered, leaderless. They will
fight; of course they will. But I fear that it will be for naught.”

Her voice altered slightly and Simon
heard what might have been a touch of sadness.

“
It was a worthy effort, I
think. We worked with what we had. And if we go down in the end,
well, it will be with few regrets.”

“
So that's it? I die, you give
up and the Light is extinguished?” he asked with disgust. “Wow.
I'm surprised that you and the gods of Chaos fought as long as you
did, if your side is willing to roll over this easily.”

There was a moment of stillness and
Simon felt the air around him chill to the point where he was
shivering.

Can the dead feel the cold, he
wondered. Maybe it was more mental than physical but it sure felt
real.

“
Have a care, little one,”
the voice said with a touch of steel in it. “Have a care. You
know nothing of our endless struggle against all that is black and
evil in creation. This one chance remained for us; a chance to tip
the balance of power back to an equal footing. And now, unless
something unforeseen happens, that chance is gone.”

“
Lady, I meant no disrespect.
But after everything that I've gone through, everything that we've
all gone through, to lose now is, well, is heartbreaking.”

The air stirred around him again and
ripples broke the mirrored surface of the lake. The temperature rose
and a hint of sweetness, like night-blooming wildflowers, soothed
Simon's mind.

“
Yes, I understand. And I wish
that there was something I could do, child. I do. But even we whom
others call gods cannot turn back time. What is, is. Your body is
gone, consumed by your sacrifice. If there were some other vessel
suitable to hold your soul, perhaps we could use our waning strength
to return you to your world but...”

The goddess's voice faded away and
Simon sighed with real regret.

I guess I'm done, he thought. Next
stop, who the hell knows? He searched the sky; as always, he was awed
by the view of forever. Out there somewhere, that's where I'm going.
But to what end? Will I be alone? Will it be wonderful? Or terrible?
Damn it, I'm not ready!

“
Child, one of my brothers has
spoken with me,” the voice said suddenly. From the darkness,
the image of the goddess appeared and she walked forward to stand
next to Simon.

“
He has offered you a chance, a
possible way to reenter your world,” she said, looking down at
him.

Simon felt a surge of excitement.

“
A way? What way?'

“
Something that, I admit, had
not occurred to me. It is a desperate chance and may not succeed. And
if it does, our dark kin will know of it immediately, because we will
have to expend our power directly, instead of hiding it away as we
have been doing. It will illuminate your renewed presence on Earth
like a beacon and may bring their wrath down upon you. It will
certainly ignite their fury toward us again. But we will take that
risk, if you will.”

“
How? Are you saying that there
is a way to have me reborn on Earth?”

“
Yes. Well, perhaps.” She
shook her head in puzzlement. “It is a chance, that is all I
can say. Look, and see what I see,” she told him and pointed at
the lake.

Simon turned eagerly and watched the
surface turn again into a mirror. A vision floated up from the depths
and he saw a woman lying alone in a bed. The mattress was simply
straw covered with a stained and torn blanket.

She was convulsing in agony, sweat
rolling down her face. The room around her was filled with debris and
garbage. She was alone.

“
This poor woman is a
Changling, as you can see. She and her mate, a man whom she knew from
before the end of the world, survived alone in a remote village, in a
country once known as Brazil. Have you heard of it?”

“
I have.”

“
The man was killed by a beast
when out hunting several weeks ago. Since then, this woman has barely
survived on what she could find in the forest; fruits, a few edible
plants. Had she not been pregnant, she would have stood a better
chance, but it has been hard on her and now, in her last extremity,
she is giving birth and is too weak to survive.”

“
She's going to die? Alone? Oh,
the poor woman,” Simon said, watching her convulsions with a
terrible sadness.

“
Yes. It is a tragedy. But her
only wish is that her child survive. Without her, it will die within
hours of its birth. And because of this, because the baby is doomed,
no soul has flown to join it. No spirit will embrace it for its last
few lonely hours of life.”

Simon listened, aghast, at what he
thought the goddess was saying.

“
Wait. You mean that you want
to send my soul, spirit, whatever, into the newborn child? But why? I
will simply die too, won't I?”

“
No, young one, you will not.
That is what I am trying to tell you. If you infuse this unclaimed
child, become its soul, the body will alter and Change to mirror your
own. You will become it and it will become you.”

She gave him a stern look.

“
It will be hard, and painful.
To my knowledge, this has never been done before. All souls born are
new beings and grow and learn as their bodies do.”

“
What about reincarnation?
Doesn't that have the same effect? An old soul in a new body?”

The goddess laughed lightly.

“
A charming conceit, but there
is no such thing. One soul, one body, one chance. That is all any
mortal ever gets. But we will try this once, if you are willing. As
I've said, it will be far from pleasant. You will be alone and
vulnerable for several hours as your new body grows. In that time,
should an animal or creature sent by our evil cousins descend upon
you, it will mean your death, again. And this time, it will be
permanent.”

He was trying to wrap his head around
the concept. Being born again. Taking someone else's body for his
own. It just didn't feel right somehow.

“
And what if I say no?”
he asked carefully, wondering whether the goddess would become angry
at the thought of someone rejecting her 'gift'.

“
No? And why would you say no,
child?”

“
I'm not sure. I just don't
know if I can take over another person like that.”

She sighed gently and shook her head.

“
The child is a blank slate,
young one. You would not be 'taking over' anyone. But since you have
asked, here is your answer. If you say no, your mortal journey on
Earth is at an end and you will move beyond the Veil to whatever
destiny awaits you. What that will be I cannot say. That desperate
mother will die and her child will die. Eventually the rest of
humanity will die.”

She looked up at the crystal stars.

“
And one day, we of the Light
shall also die. The universe will be plunged into darkness never to
rise again.”

She turned away from the sky and
stared keenly at Simon.

“
That is what will happen if
you say no.”

Gees, he thought. No pressure!

“
So you are saying that the
fate of the entire universe rests on my decision right now? Forgive
me, Lady, but I think that you're overestimating my importance.”

She looked at him for a moment and
then she smiled lovingly. It was like a bright light pushing back the
darkness.

“
Perhaps I am, child. But we
'gods' tend to deal in absolutes. Absolute good or absolute evil. We
rarely see events in shades of gray. What I have told you is the
probable future, yes, but you are correct; it may not come to pass.
Who can say?”

She stepped back and her face became
remote and expressionless.

“
However you choose, the moment
of decision has come, Simon O'Toole. Even now, that sad young mother
is giving birth. With her last breath, she is pushing her son out
into a cruel and unfeeling world, praying that someone, anyone, will
save him. Will you be the one to do that, or will she have wasted the
last of her strength for nothing?”

“
If I say yes, in a way I will
become her son, won't I?”

“
In a way, yes. Your body will
alter to become a mirror of your own before your death, but
physically, you will be her son.”

“
Then yes, I suppose.”
Simon said with a mixture of elation and fear. “To help my
people, and to honor that poor woman's sacrifice, I will say...yes.”

“
Very well, young one. The
choice is made. Prepare yourself. The next few hours will be some of
the most dangerous you have ever faced, and the most painful. I wish
you well and, for what it is worth, I give you my blessing.”

The goddess reached out and laid her
hand gently on Simon's head.

“
Thank you, Lady, for this
chance. I swear that I won't squander it,” he said, trembling
as he felt her divine power descend into him and touch his soul.

The stars began to fade and the
goddess went with them. Before they disappeared completely, she
smiled and shook her head.

“
Do not make promises that you
can't keep, child,” she told him.

And then there was nothing but...

Pain! Red, raw, endless waves of
pain. Simon screamed in agony, pain that made all of his previous
suffering seem trivial as his body convulsed and twisted.

He screamed for relief and was barely
aware that the sound was not an adult's cry for help but a baby's
howl.

His vision was tinged with blood and
the blurred world around him was painted red. He couldn't seem to
focus on anything as he tried to concentrate on a single point, a way
to anchor himself and bear down on the pain.

Part of the relentless agony was
Simon's inability to breathe properly. His nose and throat felt like
they were stuffed with cotton and he couldn't take a full breath.
Pushing aside as much of the physical pain as possible, he focused on
coughing and sneezing, trying to clear out his lungs and sinuses of
whatever was blocking them.

The sounds of his weak coughing were
so foreign to him that the wizard was distracted from his body's
suffering. He used all of his strength on just his ability to breathe
and finally cleared out the mucus that had been blocking his lungs
and sucked in a deep, sweet breath of air.

It was such a relief that he actually
laughed, a tiny gurgle of child-like amusement.

His vision was still unfocused. The
world was shuttered and foreign, nothing was sharply defined and he
couldn't tell where he was.