Chapter 25

  Chocking revelations

  The debate had ended an hour earlier. Aaronn, Linart, and Lunamilla had made their way to the meeting point beneath the bridge, where Niel had assigned them their mission to spy on Senator Neima. Niel arrived under a black umbrella, accompanied by Senator Solana.

  “So you’re the famous Aaronn?” she asked.

  “Yes,” he replied. “As promised, we completed our mission regarding Senator Neima and retrieved the amarite we needed.”

  Niel stepped forward, stunned.

  “What? Where did you find it? I hope you didn’t help yourselves to Neima’s reserves! The senator is already in serious danger after the debate!”

  “Come now, Niel, let him speak.”

  Aaronn exchanged a glance with his two teammates. They nodded. Lunamilla drew out a capsule containing purified amarite from the Endless Pouch.

  “It’s possible we won’t even need your purification device anymore, Senator,” she said, showing it to her.

  Solana’s eyes widened briefly. She took the capsule and inspected it herself.

  “Where?” she asked.

  “Well… it seems the ghost mercenaries were on our side. They were sent by my sister, Anastasia. The shadow power must come from an unknown ally.”

  The senator’s brows knit together.

  “An unknown ally? Anastasia would have told me if she had sent someone…”

  Besides, it made no sense to send members of the resistance to retrieve amarite if the power behind the ghost mercenaries could obtain it so easily.

  “I agree,” Aaronn added. “But I think these capsules are safe. They can’t be traced. And we have more than enough.”

  The senator looked doubtful before continuing:

  “Niel told me about your so-called power, Aaronn. How can we be certain that’s what this is?”

  “You’ll have to settle for the mission’s results, Senator.”

  She allowed herself a faint smile.

  “So you’re asking me to believe that you can accelerate the ‘giving’ and the ‘taking’ of the universe? You, who do not possess silver eyes? How can such a power rest in the hands of a mere human?”

  “Despite the colossal difference in strength between you and the Chosen, you persist in your fight for equality. How can mere humans dare oppose beings they consider divine?”

  Her smile faded, and her brows tightened slightly.

  “If we were mere humans, how could we give birth to Half-Chosen?” she shot back, handing the capsule to Aaronn.

  He took it, meeting her gaze steadily.

  “And if I were only a simple human, how do you explain that I can accelerate the ‘giving’ and the ‘taking’ of the universe? You see, I am convinced that mankind and what you believe to be divine are far closer than you think.”

  The senator paused at that last statement. The true question was not what belonged to the divine, but rather the extent of human limits.

  “Very well… you’ve got me,” she said at last, releasing the capsule. “I’m willing to trust you from here on. As for me, I’ll likely be sidelined within the next few days, but I have faith in the resistance for what comes next. Thank you for the evidence you brought me, even if I didn’t get the chance to use it.”

  “Why?” Linart asked.

  “My request to project the images was denied. That’s why I had to resort to my contingency strategy… In any case, we must leave you now. We cannot be seen together. And I believe Aaronn has earned his place among us. Take him to the resistance and find out what this ghost mercenary matter is about.”

  Aaronn and the others left the city to join the resistance camp. A cart carried them toward the Falls of Nielle, which separated the planet’s two continents, and was now traveling along a dirt path that wound through the Forest of Destiny.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  “It’s really strange that our escape still hasn’t been announced,” Linart said, seated opposite Aaronn, who adjusted his cloak.

  “That’s true… but none of the senator’s men spotted the Eyes in the city either,” Lunamilla replied beside him. “So I doubt he’s on our trail.”

  Aaronn didn’t know what to think. Linart’s first theory was that Manve?n had discovered their identities and was trying to track down the resistance by following them. Yet he had shown no sign of life. And it seemed impossible that he could have spied on them in the heart of the city without being noticed. Aaronn would have sensed it.

  “Would you like me to take you across the bridge?” asked the driver.

  The vast forest gave way to a sweeping green plain, where the cliffs of the continent of Amraal plunged into massive waterfalls. A majestic bridge, seemingly forged from amarite, stretched toward the misty horizon, as though linking heaven and earth.

  “No, thank you,” Linart replied. “We’ll get off here.”

  After they climbed down, the cart continued toward the bridge while the group assessed their situation.

  “So this is where the resistance headquarters is?” Aaronn asked.

  Lunamilla exchanged a look with Linart. He gave her an approving smile.

  “Yes,” she answered. “Although this bridge leads to the neighboring continent, Emraal, it is sacred. It can lead to a dimension superimposed upon our own. To cross the barrier, you must pronounce a sacred mantra—a password. Bellum hic nullus locus est. There is no place for war here.”

  “Alright then, let’s go,” Aaronn said. “We shouldn’t waste any more time.”

  “Wait…” Linart interrupted. “I… I wanted to thank you for your help. And I’m sorry I doubted you.”

  “You have nothing to reproach yourself for,” Aaronn replied. “It’s because of your kindness that I’m here. Thank you for trusting me. It takes courage to accept the dubious explanations of a stranger from space.”

  Linart smiled, a little shyly.

  With those words, they set off toward the bridge, a gentle breeze brushing their skin. The sun was beginning to set, its orange rays reflecting off towering white clouds.

  “You’ve been careless,” a deep voice announced above them.

  Aaronn’s heart lurched in his chest, freezing him in place. Lunamilla and Linart were equally startled. The shadow that fell over them advanced and stopped near the bridge. Aaronn looked up—and what he saw confirmed his worst fear.

  Manve?n had indeed laid a trap.

  The Light Warrior hovered proudly above them, the two white veils flowing from the back of his armor dancing elegantly in the twilight breeze. The contours of his armor reflected the last rays of the sun. In his right hand, he held his long iridescent sword with its golden hilt.

  “How!?” Aaronn shouted. “How did you approach us without me sensing your presence?”

  “The two white veils floating behind me are a sacred treasure. They conceal my energy. Haven’t you noticed you couldn’t sense it from the beginning?”

  Aaronn’s eyes widened. Even standing before him, he felt nothing.

  “I didn’t know,” Linart admitted.

  “That’s only natural,” Manve?n continued. “It is a sacred treasure I unearthed myself using my powers.”

  He slightly raised his sword, a dark replica trailing in its wake.

  “What?” Aaronn exclaimed. “So you’re the one who created the ghost mercenaries?”

  “Exactly.”

  “How!?”

  “I assume you’ve already been informed of my abilities,” Manve?n replied. “However, one cannot reveal what even the king ignores. My power of sight does not stop at two kilometers—but at ten. Moreover, my sphere of influence extends just as far. Therefore, I was able to observe you from outside the city.”

  Aaronn could hardly believe it.

  “That still doesn’t explain the ghost mercenaries!” he retorted.

  “True. I might as well explain, since you won’t be alive by the end of the day… Believe it or not, there exists an infinity of parallel universes, layered one upon another. My eyes allow me to perceive those closest to ours… and to extract certain fragments of those realities to integrate them into the one we all know.”

  His eyes truly allowed such a feat? Then the first ghost mercenaries sent against the senator had come from a universe where Godrick Leroy had tried to attack his own son? And Aaronn’s double… from a universe where only fifty percent of his abilities had been sealed? The same for the one who neutralized Neima’s guards in the laboratory.

  Why had Manve?n concealed the full extent of his abilities from the king? The situation was turning dire. Aaronn was still limited by the restriction placed upon his powers; he could not ensure his team’s protection.

  “And Anastasia!?” Lunamilla demanded, summoning her courage. “Why did you speak of her!?”

  An amused laugh escaped the Light Warrior’s lips.

  “Lunamilla… you were the most careless when you confirmed that your sister was an ally of the resistance. You see, I did not know—but what my eyes revealed in the mine put me on the trail. At that moment, I plunged my gaze into the depths of your being… down to your DNA. That is where I recognized the link to the Castus family. In the laboratory, my doubts became certainty.”

  “Y… you manipulated us…” she whispered.

  “Once again, correct. I always found it strange how the resistance’s allies managed to conceal themselves—the fusion device of Senator Solana, her immunity to Linceuil’s power outside the sacred institutes, your Endless Pouch, undetectable even to my eyes… I know only one person capable of crafting enchantments of concealment so powerful and so imperceptible: Anastasia Castus.”

  Aaronn clenched his fist. What could he do?

  “By letting you glimpse my reaction, I was certain you would choose to flee. All I had to do was follow you discreetly. I clung to the hypothesis that you possessed an Endless Pouch and were using it to gather amarite. That is why I handed you the harvests through my powers—so you would complete your mission and lead me here, to the gates of the resistance. All that remains is for me to awaken your shadows with my eyes and have them show me the way.”

  Running was pointless.

  Aaronn leapt into the air, springing from foothold to foothold until he reached the Light Warrior’s height.

  “Oh?” Manve?n reacted. “You intend to fight me?”

  “Yes,” Aaronn stated firmly, removing his cloak.

  It fluttered away on the wind.

  “Aaronn, stop! You can’t win!” Linart shouted.

  Aaronn knew the difference in strength between them—but he could not stand still and do nothing. He had only one chance to defeat his opponent, and he would not let it slip away.

  “Then come,” Manve?n challenged in a low voice, raising his sword.