God of the Abyss (35 page)

I was saved.

“Magic is gone. I am void again!” I hugged Nano and
Dylan, but let them both go when they couldn’t take any more. It was difficult
to be gentle when I was excited. “Thank you, Dylan! You made me void again!”

“I really don’t know how,” he said. The woman helped
me clean and bandage my foot. After that, Nano left me alone with Dylan,
Vivian, Dylan’s friend, and the baby. I was happy to meet Nano’s new baby,
Samhail, but I was more cautious with Dylan’s friend, Mordon. The man was
regal, I could tell, but there was something wild about him.

I took them to eat breakfast and everything was
great. Dylan was just as friendly and kind as I remembered, but even more
powerful. He had a deep friendship with Mordon, which gave me hope in a way. If
Dylan could be friends with Mordon, who was obviously royal, he shouldn’t have
any problems with my position. Of course, Dylan wasn’t a judgmental man. It was
just kind of odd that he couldn’t feel what I felt.

Dylan showed his kindness to the two little creatures
that were extinct and originated on Earth. He could see that they were lost and
scared and instead of turning them away, he wanted to help them.

Vivian needed a break from everything, since she was
new to this planet. Dylan, Mordon, and Sammy stayed behind in one of the
libraries and I took Vivian back to Nano’s home. She seemed quiet, almost
worried, and since people normally felt safe to talk to me, I decided to ask if
anything was wrong.

“No. It’s just that I’ve had Sammy for almost two
years and I raised him alone. I was always waiting for Nano to come back for
me. He finally did and just left me here.”

“Nano is very busy person.”

“So was I, yesterday. Now I don’t even have a job.
What else am I supposed to do now but wait around for the rare occasions when
he comes home? I don’t want to be a single mother.”

“Nano miss you, every day. He stare at wall and sigh
and give fake smile. Tell him what you want. He love you and try to make you
happy. Nano is… private, but caretaker. He wants to make family happy.”

“He does make me happy. I just don’t want to be
alone. I’m afraid he’ll be gone all the time.”

“Demand he stay.”

“I can’t do that.”

“You are his mate, like wife but forever. He will
obey.”

“What do you mean by mate?”

I sighed and tried to gather my thoughts. English was
a very difficult language to learn, and the only reason I put any effort into
it was for Dylan. Nano wanted me to learn many languages, but being able to
communicate with a friend was far more important than Nano’s reasons.

“Guardians never grow old. Some find woman they love
so much they can never lose. Nano ask Zer to make you never die. Zer agree.”

She stopped and turned to me. “Are you saying I’m
immortal?”

“No. Must do Guardian ritual on wedding night. Then
you immortal. You do not have to make choice now. Just no give up on Nano yet.
Warn him when he make you mad.”

“I will.”

As soon as I returned without Vivian, Kseve told me
something attacked Dylan, Mordon, and Sammy. There was no sign that they were
hurt, but they were most definitely missing. It wasn’t until Nano returned the
next morning that Vivian calmed down.

I really hoped Nano never left the woman alone.

*          *          *

The surface world was definitely on the verge of
being habitable. After successfully creating small biomes that were met with
pleased citizens, I was sitting through an incredibly boring council meeting.
All of the city kings got together and decided to regale me with dull ideas
about taxes and laws. It was better when everyone was too afraid to be near me.

This couldn’t be more boring. There must be
something better to do, like dying a horrible and painful death.

My body suddenly felt too tight, and I couldn’t make
my lungs breathe in. In my desperate struggle to breathe, I must have reaped
the attention from the daydreaming kings, for they all at once started shrieking
about poisons and assassins. Of course, my brother’s name was mentioned several
times, but this was not poison; this was magic.

The world around me filled with bright light until I
had to close my eyes. When I reopened them, I was outside and alone with Dylan.
I was on the surface. For the first moment, I panicked and my stomach churned
until I realized this wasn’t my world.

I threw up and Dylan got me some water, but it really
didn’t help. While I could breathe okay, my whole body felt weak and feverish.
“What did you do, Dylan?” I asked.

He looked shocked and worried, for he still didn’t
understand his power. “I don’t know. I flashed you here on accident, I guess.
My magic must have focused on your void magic instead of the actual void and
pulled you in.”

“Same thing,” I explained. My body was getting worse
and I struggled to remain conscious. Blackness narrowed my vision.

“What is?”

I explained to him how I was bonded to the void; my
power and lack of power both was because of the very void itself. It was like
the void was inside me. He told me he needed to open the void and asked me if I
could help him. Of course I couldn’t. Voids and the guardians of the void, who
could open a way into the void, were equally bonded to it, but I could no more
open a doorway than I could use demon magic.

“Do you remember Mordon? My friend was pulled into
the void and I need to find him. Can you tell me
how
to find him? What
to look for or anything?”

He really didn’t understand.

I told him that if his friend was lucky, he would end
up in the spirit world. It took the rest of my strength. Dylan tried to heal
me, but until he understood his true power, what he truly was, his magic would
never work on me. How he was actually able to summon me on accident was a
mystery.

What was even more mysterious was the gorgeous woman
who appeared next to Dylan, griped at him, and then grabbed my arm. In an
instant, I was home in my council chamber. The woman let me go and I climbed
into my chair. My stomach stopped churning and my head stopped throbbing.

“How did you do that?” I asked in Dego. Dylan, I
understood.

“I am Tiamat, goddess of Earth.”

I stumbled over my words even in my head. She was
certainly beautiful enough to be a goddess, with long black hair and deep blue
eyes. She was slim but not malnourished, tall but not abnormally so, and
beautiful in an ethereal way. “But gods use magic energy, too. Your power
should be nullified over me, because I am a void.”

She smirked, and I realized I had been rude. “The
void cannot destroy Iadnah energy nearly as fast as it can nominal energy, so I
can use certain magics on you with enough energy, but it would only last a
moment. As far as Dylan goes–”

“I know he isn’t one of the Iadnah,” I said.

She frowned. “No, he isn’t, but how did you know? He
was able to flash you.”

“I know what he is.”

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Impossible. I don’t
even know what he is. None of the gods know what he is. How could you?”

“Because I know what I am. Obviously I don’t
understand everything, but I can feel what he is. And I’m not the only one. Any
void, demon, or protector of the void will be able to sense him. They will not
understand.”

“Understand what?”

“Some of them will turn their confusion into hate,
and others will help him without question.”

“Dylan is my mate; I will always protect him.”

What an unlikely combination. “He’s going after his
friend who was lost in the void. He isn’t powerful enough yet, and he’s
desperate. You have to help him before he tears himself apart,” I said. She
vanished.

*          *          *

The library door slammed against the wall, causing me
to nearly jump out of my skin. Nano stormed into the room angry, sweating, and
with scuffs all over his clothes. “Why are you never where you are supposed to
be?!” he yelled.

Inside, I was quivering, because it broke my heart
for Nano to be angry with me. However, I was High King. As tranquil as if I
were alone, I closed my book and set it aside. “Do you wish to speak with me,
uncle? If you do, I expect you to lower your voice and remember that you are
speaking to the High King. If you would rather yell and throw things, I’m sure
the guards can find you a nice cell to keep you in for the night.”

“Oh, we’re not playing that game. I spanked you when
you were a child and I will spank you again if you act like one!”

My shock was surely apparent on my face. “You have
never hit me.” Or at least, I didn’t remember it. Of course, I was pretty young
with Nano took me in. “What’s this about? I have no idea why you’re angry.”

“You were not at the council meeting.” He was no
longer yelling, but he was shaking. This was a new side to the man that had
raised me and I didn’t know what to do.

“I skipped it. You’ve never minded before.”

“You never told me you were getting complaints about
food rations for the kingdoms.”

“I know you work very hard to provide all the
kingdoms with enough food and water. I just assumed we were running low these
past few years.”

“I would have told you if we were. Every city was
provided with plenty of food and water. Several of the cities have banded
together, led by Medreo of Kedif, to monopolize the resources. They have been
building a slave network to take effect once the surface is ready to support
people.”

I knew it. I
knew
the darkness had never
been eradicated.
“So you’re angry with me for not telling you about–”

“I’m not angry with you!” he yelled. I sat back in my
chair, confused. I have never had to defend myself against Nano before, and I
didn’t really believe I could. I was never more shocked than when Nano grabbed
my wrist harshly, pulled me from my chair, and hugged me with a strength I
wasn’t used to.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Medreo realized that I was onto him.”

“Is Vivian okay?”

“I have her hidden with a friend. I’ll stay away from
her until Medreo has been arrested. Then I went to your meeting to find you…”

“And when I was missing, you got scared?” I asked.

He clutched me tighter, his face hidden in my
shoulders. It wasn’t until I felt hot, wet tears soak into my shirt that I
realized I had never seen the man show so much emotion.

“Nano…”

“They were all dead. Everyone at the council meeting
had been poisoned. I couldn’t find you, so I thought you were dead, too.”

*          *          *

Now…

I finally accomplished my life’s work. The surface
was once again habitable. To my disappointment, but not surprise, only about
half the dile population moved aboveground. It was my intention to force
everyone out into the open, yet I faced unexpected obstacles. Our school
systems, businesses, and supply protocols were all collapsing due to the sudden
decrease in citizens, but people still needed them to function for the time
being.

Some were adamant on staying underground, some were
unsure, and some wanted to leave, but were afraid or couldn’t leave their
families. This resulted in ghost towns and raiders.

Several days ago, Dylan gave me the brilliant idea to
take a single guard, skilled in both weapons and magic, and go traveling.
Everyone knew my face, but maybe I could use a disguise… or just build a
reputation like Nano’s. I really liked the idea of a cool disguise.

Of course, when I discussed it with Kseve, he
demanded to be the one who went with me. That was fine by me; I trusted him and
his looks were scary enough that I shouldn’t be bothered by anyone. Instead of
informing anyone of what my plans were, I stole away in the middle of the
night, informing the public by way of a note on my door that I would be back
whenever I felt like it.

We went through a town, where we had to stop because
I was hungry. Of course, this must have been the only town in the world that
didn’t have a decent diner. The closest thing they had was a shady tavern,
which Kseve was hard pressed to pass on. I begged, pouted, and moaned,
clutching my stomach until he gave in. I was very hungry.

Besides, this was exactly the sort of place I wanted
to visit on my adventure. Try as Kseve would to keep me from seeing this, it
was my world. Nano was the Guardian, and he did a fine job of protecting Dios
from the gods and monsters, but I was king; I needed to see what was going on
behind my back.

It was dark and dirty, and the man behind the counter
couldn’t have been considered friendly by any definition. Kseve wouldn’t let me
out of arm’s reach. In fact, he just stood there growling and glaring at anyone
who got too close while I ordered. I really hoped he was the reason everyone
was staring.

While other patrons had to retrieve their food from
the cook himself, a young man brought mine out to me and bowed as he set my
plate down. “Are you King Nila?”

“Would you believe me if I said no?” I asked.

He grinned widely. “I will believe what my king tells
me to.”

I laughed even as Kseve bristled. “Then sit and keep
me company,” I said. He shot a nervous glance at Kseve, who I nudged in the
chest with my fist. “He will not talk to me, just growls and demands we return
home.”

The man sat and told me about his life as I ate. The
meat was dry, the bread was hard, and the fruit could have been fresher, but
being out of the castle made everything taste better. The young man, who I
learned was named Sladi, was a sweet kid who, like all of my people, didn’t
have the resources to live a decent life. He never knew anything better; he was
never taught to read or told about our history, so he never knew people once
lived above ground.