Sara Douglass - Pilgrim

“How does she know that?” Azhure said. “Is she somehow in league with them?”

“Faraday has always put this land before her own needs and desires,” StarDrifter said sharply. “And you, Azhure, should know that better than anyone else here. Have you forgotten she died so you could live?”

Azhure’s cheeks reddened, and she dropped her eyes.

“Enough,” Axis said. “Caelum, you are our hope.”

“Me?”

Axis looked about. “Caelum, my friends, can we sit? We all have information to share, and my legs have lost their god-like endurance.”

Leagh took his arm, and then Azhure’s, and led them towards a fire set mid-distance between two trees where it could do no harm. “Sit down, and rest those legs.”

“What do you mean, I am your hope?” Caelum said, watching his parents. He had refused food, and had waited impatiently until Axis, Azhure and StarDrifter had eaten. They had very obviously had little in the past few days.

“Not only our hope, my son, but Tencendor’s.” Axis stalled for time, wiping his fingers carefully on a napkin that Leagh handed him. He hesitated, then looked his son in the eye.

“There is much I did not tell you while you were so entwined in hostilities with Zared. But now that I see you both sit side by side, in peace, it gives me the strength to say what I hesitated to speak previously.

“Caelum, I cannot say all the details, but for now listen to me well. All of you listen to me well. Beneath each of the Sacred Lakes lie Repositories, all heavily warded and defended, and in each of these Repositories lies the various life parts of the Midday Demon, Qeteb.”

Axis continued on in a low voice, telling of the Maze Gate, and of its age-old message that the Crusader was the only one capable of defeating the Demons. Forty years ago it had named the Crusader as StarSon.

“It waited for a year after you were born, Caelum. It watched and waited until it was sure, and then it named you, StarSon, as Tencendor’s hope.”

“The hope of many worlds,” StarDrifter said reflectively, “if these TimeKeepers can so effortlessly move through the stars.”

“But how?” Caelum’s eyes flickered between his parents and then about the rest of the group. “How? I have no power left! Nothing! How can I meet —”

“Caelum, be still … and believe.” Azhure rested her hand on Caelum’s knee. “There is hope, and there is a weapon you can wield.”

Caelum said nothing. He dropped his eyes to where his hands fiddled with a length of leather tack.

“The Rainbow Sceptre,” Azhure said. “It contains the power of this world and the power of the Repositories … the power that currently still traps Qeteb.”

“Unfortunately, mother,” Caelum said, his voice heavy with sarcasm, “Drago stole the Sceptre. Took it to the Demons. Should we just ask for it back?”

“The Sceptre has ever had its own agenda,” said yet another voice to the side of the clearing, “and to blame Drago for its machinations is surely pointless.”

Everyone stared, voiceless.

Across the clearing stood Faraday, Zenith slightly behind her left shoulder, Drago standing by her right, his entire body tense and watchful.

Just behind them were the pale shapes of the two donkeys, their long ears pricked forward curiously.

“Zenith!” StarDrifter breathed, locking eyes with the woman, but before he could move, Axis rose to his feet.

Axis stared, and — in a single flash of thought — remembered. He remembered the years of pain and suffering that had been needed to defeat both Borneheld and Gorgrael. The men and women who had died in order to reunite Tencendor. The lives that had been ruined by those who had thought to seize power illegally. He remembered how he and Azhure had fought to rebuild a life, not only for themselves and their family, but for an entire nation.

He remembered how they had thought themselves free of grief and treachery.

But here before him stood the son who had spent his time in Azhure’s womb plotting how best to kill both elder brother and father. Here was the son who’d conspired with Gorgrael, who had murdered RiverStar, and who had single-handedly wrought the complete destruction of all Axis had fought so long and hard for.

Here. Before him. Standing as if he thought to ask for a place among them.

And beside him, Faraday and Zenith. Had both been corrupted by his evil, both seduced into supporting his treachery? His lover and his daughter — had they no loyalty for Axis either?

“You vile bastard,” Axis said, very quietly but with such hatred that Faraday instinctively took a half-step in front of Drago. “How dare you present yourself to me?”

And then he leapt forward.

Herme stepped forward to stop him, but Axis spun about and slammed a fist into his face, knocking him to the ground. As Herme fell, Axis grabbed a knife from the Earl’s weapons belt and strode forward again.

Zared jumped to his feet, but was pulled back by Caelum, and both tumbled to the ground.

“No!” Faraday cried, taking another step forward, but Axis shoved her to one side. Faraday stumbled back against Zenith who had to wrap both arms about her to prevent her falling.

Before anyone else had time to move, or even cry out, Axis seized Drago, slammed him back against a tree, and buried the knife a half-finger’s depth into the junction of Drago’s neck and shoulder.

One of the donkeys brayed, and both pranced nervously.

“I should have done this forty years ago!” Axis cried, and he stabbed the dagger as deep into Drago’s neck as he could.

Drago gagged, uttered a low, choking cry, then sagged against the tree trunk as his father wrenched the knife out.

Axis drew it back for the final, killing blow.

Blood pumped out of Drago’s neck.

Faraday jerked out of Zenith’s arms and tried to grab Axis’ hand or arm, but he was too strong for her, and threw her to the ground, overbalancing himself.

“Axis!” Zared yelled, scrambling to his feet again, but this time both Askam and Caelum grabbed him and wrestled him back a pace or two.

“For the Stars’ sakes, Zared,” Caelum cried, “let my father end this now! ” He hooked a foot under Zared’s leg, and toppled him to the ground.

Leagh dropped to her husband’s side, shooting Caelum a hard look. At the same time Zenith knelt by Drago, her joy at seeing StarDrifter alive completely forgotten in her concern for her brother. She grabbed at the hem of her cloak, tearing a section free, and folded the material into a thick square, using it to try to stifle the blood seeping from Drago’s throat.

Everyone else stood, helpless and unsure, wondering who was right, wondering what could be done, wondering whether or not another death would truly help.

Axis recovered his balance from Faraday’s attempt to push him over, drew his arm back — and found it seized from behind in sharp, murderous teeth.

Sicarius. The leader of Azhure’s Alaunt.

No-one had seen him move, and no-one knew where he’d come from, but now the hound pulled Axis to the ground, and stood over him, snarling and snapping.

“Sicarius!” Azhure buried her hands in the loose skin of the hound’s neck and tried to pull him off, but the hound would not budge.

Azhure tugged desperately, unable to believe Sicarius’ savage assault. What was the hound doing? To attack Axis?

“Drop the knife, Axis!” StarDrifter yelled. “Drop the damned knife or that dog is going to kill you!”

Then, ignoring Axis completely, he fell to his knees beside Drago, adding the weight of his hands to those of Zenith to try and stop the bleeding. He locked eyes briefly with Zenith, then turned slightly to Faraday who was now at Drago’s side also.