A Division of Souls - A Novel of the Mendaihu Universe (58 page)

“I’ll see it soon enough,” she said. “You
can tell me when you return. Do what you have to do there, kid, and
come back to me real soon, okay?”

Denni laughed.
‘kay,
she said, and
the warmth surrounding Caren slowly started to dissipate along with
the light. The room dimmed to the point of ambience, just enough
that she could see where she was, and just enough to make out
certain objects in the room.
I love you, Karinna,
she said,
her voice now just a whisper.
I’ll be back. I promise. I’ll call
if it’s going to be longer.

Caren laughed, instantly recognizing those
same words she had said to Denni just a few days earlier. “I love
you too, kid.”

*

Watching with Lightseeing eyes, Kai felt the
first blast of spiritual energy rebounding against the
hrrah-sehdhyn barrier, pulsing and thrumming against it in a dense
white cloud. Though she and Ashan stood well away from the barrier
at least two blocks away, the force of the wash sent an unexpected
and disorienting shockwave past it. The building lurched and swayed
under their feet, then after an agonizing moment, swayed back. The
people below stopped or slowed momentarily, then stopping
completely, staring up at the overcast sky. Kai sensed the brief
wave of uncertainty from them, of a sudden reckoning that hit hard
in their souls and in their minds. A sudden guarded awareness. A
sudden taste of senses and memories come back to life. Kai
shivered, sensing all of this and not wanting to look away at
all.

The City was at last, truly awakening.

“How are we doing?” she asked Ashan, who
stood to her right, watching plainly.

“It depends,” he said, letting go of the
ledge he had held for his own support. “The storm is winding down
It isn’t as violent. But I’m wondering how it’s affecting those
within.”

Kai nodded silently, thinking the same
thing. Aside from Alec and Caren, she could think of no other
contacts within the hrrah-sehdhyn. They had earlier sensed Nick and
Sheila near the warehouse, against orders to take the day off, and
odds were good that Caren was inside. She frowned as she watched
another rolling wave emanating from Alec’s direction, billowing out
as harmless white energy and expanding towards them. The shock was
softer this time, barely detectable.

“What about Inspector Farraway?” she offered
after a moment. “As far as I know, he’s still at ARU Headquarters.
Perhaps he can be of help.”

Ashan winced. “I don’t know about that. Are
you suggesting he go in, or send other soulsensers?”

Kai blushed, realizing the futility of her
suggestion. “I suppose you’re right. Still…we need someone in there
to tell us what’s happening. Alec’s busy…so I’m going to try to
pick up Nick and Sheila. Hopefully they’ve left their commlinks
open.”

Ashan nodded. “If you can, get them as close
to the warehouse as possible. If they can’t get in, at least get
them in the neighborhood. I’ll watch while you call.”

“Are you sure?” she said, touching his arm.
“Your eyes…”

“They’re better, thank you,” he smiled.
“Only retinal flash burn.”

She nodded and attempted to raise the two on
her comm, trying several times on different frequencies. The
airwaves were filled with crackling static, an aftereffect of the
spirit waves, making it tough to raise anyone at all. She had to
test all of them three times before finally finding Nick, who
happened to be calling for Alec at same time using the same method.
The rustling of raindrops hitting pavement echoed behind his
voice.

“Kai?” he called out, his voice somewhere
between excitement and bewilderment. “Where the hell are you?”

“Northern Avenue,” she said. “Gelinas and
Associates Building. Just outside the hrrah-sehdhyn zone.” She
explained to him the manner of how the storm had started and what
was being done to prevent it from becoming much worse. She also
informed him of everyone’s relative safety both inside and outside
the barrier, and that she needed confirmation that all was well
within.

“No issues I can see,” he said. “We’re
across the street from Moulding’s. Me, Sheila and about twenty
other people, we all ducked into an open dock bay door at another
warehouse…Dubois and Sons. That’s the name of it. We have a good
view of Moulding’s from here, and there doesn’t seem to be anything
out of the ordinary happening.”

Kai pursed her lips.
We have to get him
inside.

Only if he is willing, Akaina,
Ashan
reminded.
You must ask him.

To her relief, Nick had answered the simple
question with an excited affirmative, more than willing to
investigate. She worried that his motives had been fueled by the
church attack, however, and made a point to remind him who had been
behind that.

“Sheila and I are more than willing to do
this,” he reiterated. “Although for separate reasons. I want to
make sure Caren and Denni are safe…but I think Sheila has other
plans. I think she’s getting more of this spirit energy than I am.
She wants to make sure everyone’s safe on that level.”

Kai nodded in Ashan’s direction. “Thank you,
Nick. Stay on this channel and keep in touch with us every ten
minutes.”

“Will do. Sheila and I are heading over
there right now…” The sudden ticking sound in back of his voice
grew louder. “That’s the rain, if you’re wondering. You wouldn’t
believe the downpour we’re having here…”

Kai laughed. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll be
here. Alec is on E8 if you need him as well.”

“Got it,” he said. “Back in ten.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Anchors

Abandonment. Saone felt it more than
anything else, and it stung.

This must be how it feels,
she
thought as she crouched to the floor of the office.
To abandon
everything you truly believe in. To be abandoned by all that you
love.
She wiped a stray tear from her eye as she watched the
warehouse floor through the long hallway connecting the two rooms.
With her limited field of vision she could still see the hundreds
of people huddled all over the floor, all in some meditative trance
that she could not understand. Kryssyna stood above her, leaning
against an empty desk with her arms crossed, waiting patiently for
her to make the next move.

“You never got a hold of your dad, did you,”
she said.

Saone shook her head. “No…he wouldn’t answer
me.” She grimaced and faced the wall behind her, knowing it was in
the same direction as the Mirades Tower. “What the hells are you
doing up there,
fadayin
?” She shook her head and stood up,
feeling the strain as she stretched her muscles out again.
“Nrgh…ouch. Shouldn’t have stayed in that position for so
long.”

“Definitely lacks the stamina of a True
Warrior,” Kryssyna said, grinning at her.

Saone shot her a nasty glare and continued
as she paced the room. “He knew something, damn it all, and I’m not
sure what. He knows what Denni’s doing right now, this second, and
he won’t tell me what it is. He expected the Gathering and the
Cleansing. He knew it would lead up to this, but what am I
missing…?”

“You mean he and Nehalé are working
together?”

Saone came up short. “What? No! Not in the
least. He knew the plot well beforehand, I want to know if he knew
who the characters were.”

Kryssyna smiled. “Interesting choice of
words. This coming from the daughter of the producer of the latest
Johnny Goto movie.”

“I’m serious!” Saone laughed at her friend’s
odd joke despite her frustration. “You’re in a good mood, aren’t
you?”

Kryssyna stepped up to Saone and gently took
her hands. “It’s the Rain, Saone. The Cleansing of the Spirits has
already begun. And despite our plans, we’ve become part of this
cleansing.” She pulled Saone close and embraced her. “You and I, we
were born Shenaihu, but we both had our spirits altered when Nehalé
performed the Awakening. You by force, me willingly. We’re both
cho-nyhndah now, and we’re still making our peace with that. And as
much as it pains me, I admit Nehalé’s right. Better a peaceful
unity than an eventually unstable segregation.”

Saone shivered. “What do you mean?”

Kryssyna took her face and held it in her
hands. Her light blue eyes were wide, willingly inviting Saone to
take hold of the spirit within. “Listen, Saone. Your father, the
Dahné, wants another season of Embodiment where we’re at constant
odds with each other. No, don’t even tell me otherwise. You know
very well he’s scared to death of what would happen if we had peace
instead. To him, it would mean the Shenaihu lost. He sees it only
in reaction — for every move Nehalé makes, he has to respond in
kind. And all his plans were turned into Mendaihu positives. The
nuhmn’dah spying on Denni’s parents back then? The hrrah-sehdhyn
now? It’s as if Dahné Lehanna is
handing
the Mendaihu this
victory.”

Saone huffed in frustration. “And he doesn’t
give up this easily, either,” she said. She frowned at her in
defeat, but despite her annoyance, she couldn’t stay mad at her.
She couldn’t be mad at her, especially when she was telling the
truth.

“So what are
we
doing here,
shadhisi?” she said, arching a brow at her. “If it wasn’t our fate
to stop the Cleansing process, why are you and I here? Are we to be
cleansed as well? And if so, why aren’t we in some meditative state
like those out there?”

Because your fate has not been completely
fulfilled, Saone.

Saone gasped at the voice that came from
nowhere, and everywhere. “D...Denysia?”

I was so very glad to meet you, Saone
Lehanna,
she said. Saone recognized the voice, and yet it
sounded wrong somehow — no, not wrong, but changed. Peaceful,
wiser.
And despite our lack of communication, I could feel you.
I only recently realized you were Natianos’ youngest daughter. It’s
only by chance now that I could feel your presence here at the
warehouse, and found you had not left at all.

Saone’s jaw trembled as she spoke.
“Den…Denysia? Is that you?”

She felt a wave of positive energy, of pure
love
, wash over them in reply.
Yes, Saone,
she
answered.
It’s me.

“Where are you?”

I…am everywhere,
she answered.
I
am in each and every person’s conscience right now…although I’ve
managed to narrow my attention down to just those directly
involved. I believe I’m currently carrying on conversations with
about five thousand people at once at this very moment.
She let
out a youthful laugh.
And I don’t even know how I’m doing
it.

“You’re…” Kryssyna started. “You’re the One
of All Sacred.”

Of course I am, but still…I’d like to
know
how
I’m doing all of this. I’m not going to just accept
it blindly. I’m stubborn enough to want to know why I can do
everything I’m doing.

Saone stared into an empty space, focusing
on the girl’s presence. Slowly and awkwardly she pulled out of
Kryssyna’s embrace and sat down on the desk. She glanced down the
hallway again at the meditating people, and wondered what kind of
conversation she was having with them at the moment. Were they
praising her as some otherworldly goddess? Were they talking about
the more mundane things in life? What was she asking them to
do?

Were they asking what would become of their
old soul, once the Cleansing did what it was supposed to do?

I need your help, Saone. I need help from
both of you. You are unaffected by the Rain of Light and the
Cleansing, for some reason I still can’t figure out. Perhaps you
are both cho-nyhndah already…?

“Yes,” Saone said, and for the first time
she found herself accepting that truth without mortification. Yes,
she was cho-nyhndah. It was time to embrace that now. “Kryss and I
were both pure Shenaihuza. We can trace our lines back to the
original Trisandi tribes. But we…well, it’s a long story.”

A ripple of something happy, perhaps
amusement, emanated from Denysia’s presence and washed over them.
All the better,
she said excitedly.
There’s only one way
we can end this Cleansing, you know…this isn’t something that’s
going to just burn itself out. Nehalé Usarai opened the door to
this otherness, and opened it far too wide, far too early. I’ve
managed to contain it, thanks to the hrrah-sehdhyn barrier, but it
needs to be closed again, before everything falls out of
control.

Saone felt a sinking feeling in the pit of
her stomach as the memory of Nehalé’s ritual came rushing back into
clear view. Her pain and agony at the foot of the Tower…all that
energy siphoned out, and that vision…the vision of blistering white
light, burning and obliterating everything…all this time, she
believed that had been the Rain’s doing. She’d believed what she
saw was the Rain spiraling out of control, destroying Bridgetown.
How wrong, how dreadfully wrong she had been! She hadn’t been
caught in the Rain at all, but in the connection of pure Light, of
both Shenaihuza and Mendaihuza spirit forms…and she had witnessed
their terrifying strength firsthand.

The only way to stop it was to let her
father, a Shenaihuza, perform the closing just as he’d planned.

“Goddess…” she whimpered. “Denysia…I—I can’t
do that!”

You can and you will, Saone.
There
was a hint of force to her voice.
You know this is the only way
it can happen.

“Denysia…I can’t,” Saone cried. “People are
going to die!”

Not if I can help it.

“What can you do?” Kryssyna called out. “You
just said yourself that you can’t close this by yourself. How can
you say you can save these five thousand people you’re talking
to?”